1^ 


* 


5/5^^ 


PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


BV  133  .L4  1888 

Lewis,  Abram  Herbert,  1836- 

1908. 
A  critical  history  of  Sunda 

legislation  from  321  to 


h 


K 


A  CRITICAL  HISTORY  OF 


SUNDAY  LEGISLATION 


FROM    321    TO    1888   A.  D. 


BY 
A.  H.  LEWIS,  D.D. 

Author  0/  *■''  Sabbath  and  Sunday:   Argument  and  History'''' 
"  Biblical  Teachings  Concerning  the  Sabbath  and  Sunday  " 
*'^  Critical  History  o/the  Sabbath  and  the  Sunday  iii  the  Christian  Church  ' 

etc. 


NEW  YORK 

D.  APPLETON  AND  COMPANY 

1888 


Copyright,  1888, 
By  D.  APPLETON  AND   COMPANY. 


lDebicttte5 

WITH      MANY      PLEASANT      MEMORIES 

To  President  J.  ALLEN,  D.  D.,  Ph.  D.,  LL.D. 

FROM    WHOM     CAME    THE     INSPIRATION 

WHICH    HAS    GUIDED    THE   AUTHOR 

THROUGH  MANY   YEARS   OF  HISTORIC   RESEARCH 


PREFACE 


This  book  enters  a  field  not  hitherto  occupied 
in  the  literature  of  the  Sunday  question.  Sun- 
day legislation  is  more  than  fifteen  centuries  old, 
but  the  general  reader  has  not  hitherto  been 
able  to  know  accurately  either  its  extent,  or  its 
specific  character.  The  following  pages  answer 
many  questions  which  are  pressing  to  the  front. 
Existing  Sunday  laws  are  much  disregarded,  and 
many  contradictory  theories  are  put  forth  rela- 
tive to  them.  Much  that  is  said  concerning  them 
is  superficial  and  impertinent,  because  men  do 
not  understand  their  origin  or  their  history. 
The  surpassing  value  of  the  "  historic  argument  " 
is  slowly  gaining  recognition.  History  is  an  or- 
ganic whole,  a  series  of  reciprocal  causes  and 
effects.  No  period  can  be  separated  from  that 
which  has  gone  before,  nor  be  kept  distinct  from 
that   which   follows.     Herein    lies    the   value   of 


vi  Preface, 

facts  like  those  which  compose  this  volume. 
Every  effort  to  remodel  existing  Sunday  legisla- 
tion, or  to  forecast  its  future,  must  be  made  in 
the  light  of  the  past.  It  is  not  the  province  of 
this  volume  to  pursue  an  argument  relative  to 
Sunday  legislation,  but  rather  to  present  those 
facts  on  which  intelligent  conclusions  must  be 
based. 

The  first  Sunday  legislation  was  the  product 
of  that  pagan  conception,  so  fully  developed  by 
the  Romans,  which  made  religion  a  department 
of  the  state.  This  was  diametrically  opposed  to 
the  genius  of  New  Testament  Christianity.  It 
did  not  find  favor  in  the  Church  until  Christian- 
ity had  been  deeply  corrupted  through  the  in- 
fluence of  Gnosticism  and  kindred  pagan  errors. 
The  Emperor  Constantine,  while  still  a  heathen — 
if  indeed  he  was  ever  otherwise — issued  the  first 
Sunday  edict  b}^  virtue  of  his  power  as  Pontifex 
Maximus  in  all  matters  of  religion,  especially  in 
the  appointment  of  sacred  days.  This  law  was 
pagan  in  every  particular. 

Sunday  legislation  between  the  time  of  Con- 
stantine and  the  fall  of  the  empire  was  a  combina- 
tion of  the  Pagan,  Christian,  and  Jewish  cults. 
Many  other  holidays  —  mostly  pagan  festivals 
baptized  with  new  names  and  slightly  modified — 


Preface,  vii 

were  associated,  in  the  same  laws,  with  the 
Sunday. 

During  the  Middle  Ages,  Sunday  legislation 
took  on  a  more  Judaistic  type,  under  the  plea 
of  analogy,  whereby  civil  authorities  claimed  the 
right  to  legislate  in  religious  matters,  after  the 
manner  of  the  Jewish  Theocracy. 

The  Continental  reformation  made  little  change 
in  the  civil  legislation  concerning  Sunday.  The 
English  reformation  introduced  a  new  theory,  and 
developed  a  distinct  type  of  legislation.  Here 
we  meet,  for  the  first  time,  the  doctrine  of  the 
transfer  of  the  Fourth  Commandment  to  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  and  the  consequent  legislation 
growing  out  of  that  theory.  The  reader  will  find 
the  laws  of  that  period  to  be  extended  theological 
treatises,  as  well  as  civil  enactments.  The  Sun- 
day laws  of  the  United  States  are  the  direct  out- 
growth of  the  Puritan  legislation,  notably,  of  the 
Cromwellian  period.  These  have  been  much 
modified  since  the  colonial  times,  and  the  latest 
tendency,  in  the  few  cases  which  come  to  direct 
trial  under  these  laws,  is  to  set  forth  laws  of  a 
wholly  different  character,  through  the  decisions 
of  the  courts. 

In  the  Sunday  legislation  of  the  Roman  Em- 
pire the  religious  element  was  subordinate  to  the 


viii  Preface. 

civil.  In  the  Middle  Ages,  under  Cromwell,  and 
during  our  colonial  period,  the  Church  was  prac- 
tically supreme.  Some  now  claim  that  Sunday 
legislation  is  not  based  on  religious  grounds. 
This  claim  is  contradicted  by  the  facts  of  all  the 
centuries.  Every  Sunday  law  sprung  from  a 
religious  sentiment.  Under  the  pagan  concep- 
tion, the  day  was  to  be  "venerated"  as  a  relig- 
ious duty  owed  to  the  God  of  the  Sun.  As 
the  resurrection-festival  idea  was  gradually  com- 
bined with  the  pagan  conception,  religious  re- 
gard for  the  day  was  also  demanded  in  honor 
of  Christ's  resurrection.  In  the  Middle-Age 
period,  sacredness  was  claimed  for  Sunday  be- 
cause the  Sabbath  had  been  sacred  under  the 
legislation  of  the  Jewish  Theocracy.  Sunday 
was  held  supremely  sacred  by  the  Puritans, 
under  the  plea  that  the  obligations  imposed  by 
the  Fourth  Commandment  were  transferred  to  it. 
There  is  no  meaning  in  the  statutes  prohibiting 
*'  worldly  labor,"  and  permitting  "  works  of  neces- 
sity and  mercy,"  except  from  the  religious  stand- 
point. There  can  be  no  ''  worldly  business,"  if  it 
be  not  in  contrast  with  religious  obligation. 
Every  prohibition  which  appears  in  Sunday  legis- 
lation is  based  upon  the  idea  that  it  is  wrong  to 
do  on  Sunday  the  things  prohibited.     Whatever 


Preface,  ix 

theories  men  may  invent  for  the  observance  of 
Sunday  on  non-religious  grounds,  and  whatever 
value  any  of  these  may  have  from  a  scientific 
standpoint,  we  do  not  here  discuss ;  but  the  fact 
remains  that  such  considerations  have  never 
been  made  the  basis  of  legislation.  To  say  that 
the  present  Sunday  laws  do  not  deal  with  the 
day  as  a  religious  institution,  is  to  deny  every 
fact  in  the  history  of  such  legislation.  The  claim 
is  a  shallow  subterfuge. 

Let  the  reader  note  that  specific  legislation 
against  the  liquor-traffic  and  its  evils  upon  Sun- 
day does  not  come  under  this  head.  Such  legis- 
lation is  no  more  pertinent  to  Sunday  than  to  any 
other  day,  except  that  as  a  day  of  leisure  Sunday 
offers  greater  opportunity  for  rioting  and  crimi- 
nality. This  is  reason  enough  for  the  most  strin- 
gent legislation  against  the  liquor-traffic  on  that 
day. 

The  writer  is  not  unaware  that  the  just  and 
unavoidable  conclusions  to  Avhich  the  following 
facts  compel,  Avill  overthrow  many  pleasant 
theories,  and  destroy  some  cherished  hopes  con- 
nected with  Sunday  legislation.  Some  minds 
will  deem  it  sacrilegious  to  oppose  these  facts  of 
history  to  revered  notions,  so  long  untouched. 
Such  considerations   are  of   little  weigrht,   when 


X  Preface, 

one  remembers  "  that  no  question  is  settled  until 
it  is  rightly  settled."  Facts  are  stubborn  be- 
cause they  are  eternal ;  and  the  theory  which  at- 
tempts to  ignore  them  insures  its  earl}^  de- 
struction. 

A.  H.  L. 

Plainfield,  N.  J.,  January,  iSS8. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAC3 

I.— The  Origin  and  Philosophy  of  Sunday  Legisla- 
tion   I 

II. — Sunday  Legislation  under  the  Roman  Empire  .    i8 
III— Sunday    Legislation    after    the    Fall   of    the 

Roman  Empire 50 

IV. — Saxon  Laws  concerning  Sunday     .        .        .        .70 

V. — Sunday  Laws  in  England 81 

VI. — Sunday   Laws   in   England  during  the  Puritan 

Supremacy 115 

VII.— Early  Sunday  Laws  of  Scotland  ;  Law  of  PIol- 

LAND  ;  Early  Sunday  in  Ireland  and  Wales    143 
VIII. —Sunday     Legislation     in     America  —  Colonial 

Period 160 

IX. — Sunday    Legislation     in    America  —  Colonial 

Period — {Continued) 184 

X.— Sunday  Laws  of  the  States  and  Territories  of 

THE  United  States 209 


SUNDAY  LEGISLATION. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  ORIGIN   AND   PHILOSOPHY   OF  SUNDAY    LEGIS- 
LATION. 

The  Sunday  question  is  coming  to  the  front. 
Some  men  demand  a  better  enforcement  of  the 
Sunday  laws.  The  masses  almost  universally  dis- 
regard them.  The  hour  demands  careful  investi- 
gation concerning  them. 

The  original  character  of  laws  and  institutions 
is  not  easily  lost.  History  is  a  process  of  evolu- 
tion, whereby  original  germs,  good  or  bad,  are 
developed.  In  the  process  of  development  modi- 
fications take  place,  and  methods  of  application 
change,  but  the  properties  of  the  original  germ 
continue  to  appear.  Neither  legislation  nor  the 
influence  of  the  Church  have  been  able  to  prevent 
the  development  of  holidayism  and  its  associate 
evils  in  connection  with  Sunday. 

One  of  two  causes  must  account  for  this. 
Either  the  people  in  the  churches  and  out  of  them 
increase  in  wickedness,  and  therefore  disregard 


2  Simday  Legislation. 

rightful  authority,  or  else  there  is  something  radi- 
cally defective  in  the  claims  by  which  Sunday  ob- 
servance is  supported.  The  explanation  lies  in 
this  last  fact.  It  is  wise,  therefore,  to  seek  the 
origin  and  the  philosophy  of  Sunday  legislation 
as  they  appear  in  history.  Outside  of  Christian- 
ity, all  religions  have  been  ethnical.  The  Gospel 
is  a  message  to  the  whole  world.  Christianity  is 
the  universal  religion.  It  knows  neither  ethnic, 
social,  nor  intellectual  distinctions.  Rich  and 
poor,  bond  and  free,  learned  and  unlearned,  old 
and  young,  meet  on  a  common  level  in  the  king- 
dom of  Christ.  This  truth  lies  at  the  core  of 
Christianity,  and  is  its  essential  characteristic. 
Christ  said  :  "  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world." 
He  taught  that  while  his  followers  must  be  in  the 
world,  mingling  with  men  and  doing  the  duties  of 
citizens,  they  were  yet  under  supreme  obligation 
to  his  spiritual  kingdom.  Neither  he  nor  his  dis- 
ciples sought  aid  from  civil  government  beyond 
the  mere  protection  due  to  citizenship.  They 
submitted  to  wrong  rather  than  rebel  against 
earthly  government,  because  of  their  allegiance  to 
the  higher  law.  The  great  apostle  to  the  Gentiles 
suffered  persecution,  bonds,  and  imprisonment 
rather  than  be  disloyal  to  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 
As  a  citizen,  he  demanded  protection  at  the  hands 
of  civil  government.  If  this  were  denied,  he  ac- 
cepted whatever  punishment,  even  unto  death, 
the  civil  law  chose  to  inflict,  that  he  might  obey 
the  law  of  God. 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  3 

Christianity  stood  between  the  Judaic  theoc- 
racy and  the  Roman  pagan  state  religion,  far 
above  them  both.  As  Christianity  moved  west- 
ward, and  gained  social  and  moral  power,  the 
Roman  state  at  length  granted  it  legal  recogni- 
tion. The  character  of  that  recognition  can  only 
be  understood  in  the  light  of  the  Roman  concep- 
tion of  religion.  Romans  regarded  all  religion  as 
a  contract  between  the  gods  and  the  state.  Re- 
ligion was  a  department  of  the  government.  The 
individual  was  nothing,  except  as  a  citizen.  "  To 
be  a  Roman  was  greater  than  to  be  a  king."  The 
relation  of  the  individual  to  the  gods  was  lost  in  the 
relation  which  the  citizen  sustained  to  them.  This 
contract  between  the  gods  and  the  state  bound 
the  citizen  to  do  certain  things,  and  the  gods  to 
do  certain  other  things  in  return.  What  the  citi- 
zen should  do  was  decided  by  civil  law.  When 
he  should  worship,  and  how ;  what  he  should  of- 
fer, and  how  much  ;  when  he  should  pray,  and 
what  should  be  his  prayer;  this  was  the  Roman 
idea. 

Speaking  of  the  religion  of  pagan  Rome  and 
of  its  consequent  effect  upon  Christianity,  Ernest 
Renan  says : 

It  was  in  the  full  force  of  the  word  a  civil  religion. 
It  was  essentially  the  religion  of  the  state  ;  there  was  no 
priesthood  distinct  from  the  state  functions  ;  the  state 
was  the  true  god  of  Rome.  The  father  had  over  the 
son  the  right  of  life  and  death  ;  but  if  the  son  held  the 
least  important  office,  and  the  father  met  him  on  the 


4  Su7iday  Legislation, 

road,  he  dismounted  from  his  horse  and  bowed  down 
before  him. 

The  consequence  of  this  essentially  political  char- 
acter of  Roman  religion  was  that  it  always  remained 
aristocratic.  A  man  became  pontiff  as  he  became  pre- 
tor  or  consul ;  when  he  was  a  candidate  for  religious 
office,  he  underwent  no  examination,  he  passed  no 
period  of  probation  in  a  seminary,  he  was  not  asked  if 
he  had  an  ecclesiastical  vocation.  He  proved  that  he 
had  served  his  country  well,  and  had  fought  bravely  in 
this  or  that  battle.  There  was  no  sacerdotal  spirit; 
these  civil  pontiffs  continued  to  be  what  they  had  been, 
cold,  practical  men,  without  the  slightest  idea  that  their 
functions  at  all  cut  them  off  from  the  rest  of  the  world. 
In  every  respect  the  religion  of  Rome  was  the  reverse  of 
a  theocracy.  The  civil  law  regulates  actions  ;  it  does 
not  occupy  itself  with  ideas ;  and  so  one  result  of  Ro- 
man religion  was  that  Rome  never  had  the  faintest 
conception  of  dogma.  The  exact  observance  of  rites 
compels  the  Deity  who,  if  the  petition  be  presented  in 
proper  form,  has  no  inquiry  to  make  into  piety  or  the 
feelings  of  the  heart.  More  than  this,  devoutness  is  a 
defect ;  it  implies  a  dangerous  exaltation  in  the  popu- 
lar mind.  Calm,  order,  regularity — this  is  what  is 
wanted.  Anything  beyond  this  is  excess  {super stitio). 
Cato  absolutely  forbids  that  slaves  should  be  allowed 
to  entertain  any  sentiment  of  piety ;  '*  know,"  he  says, 
*'  that  the  master  sacrifices  for  the  whole  household." 
Can  anything  be  more  civil,  lay,  peremptory  than  this  ? 
Men  must  not  fail  to  do  what  is  due  to  the  gods  ;  but 
they  must  not  give  them  more  than  is  their  due ;  that  is 
the  super stitio  which  the  true  Roman  abhorred  as  much 
as  he  abhorred  impiety. 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  5 

But  we  are  altogether  ignorant  of  religious  history — 
a  fact  which,  I  hope,  some  other  lecture  will  prove  to 
you  at  a  future  time — if  we  do  not  lay  it  down  as  a  fun- 
damental principle  that  Christianity  at  its  origin  is  no 
other  than  Judaism,  with  its  fertile  principles  of  alms- 
giving and  charity,  with  its  absolute  faith  in  the  future 
of  humanity,  with  that  joy  of  heart  of  which  Judaism 
has  always  held  the  secret,  and  denuded  only  of  the 
distinctive  observances  and  features  which  had  been  in- 
vented to  give  a  character  of  its  own  to  the  peculiar 
religion  of  the  Children  of  Israel. 

"  Influence  of  Rome  on  Christianity,"  etc.,  "  Hib- 
bert  Lectures  for  1886,"  pp.  16,  17. 

Before  the  advent  of  Christianity  there  was 
a  strong  tendenc}^  in  the  Roman  Empire  toward 
religious  syncretism.  It  was  deemed  a  matter  of 
courtesy  to  recognize  the  religion  of  other  na- 
tions, and  to  grant  that  religion  the  protection  of 
the  empire,  especially  when  a  nation  was  friendly 
to  the  empire,  or  was  subdued  by  it.  A  pre- 
scribed form  of  prayer  was  to  be  used  by  the  mili- 
tary representatives  of  Rome,  who,  having  con- 
quered a  nation,  and  made  them  citizens  of  the 
empire,  were  thereupon  to  pray  the  gods  of  that 
nation  to  transfer  their  allegiance  and  abiding- 
pkce  to  the  Capitol  of  the  empire.  The  ''  Pan- 
theon "  in  Rome  still  stands,  showing  how  the  em- 
pire provided  a  home  for  all  the  gods.  It  is  on 
record  that  when  Christianity,  which  was  looked 
upon  as  a  type  of  Judaism,  had  gained  sufihcient 

influence,  a  niche  was  offered  in  the  Pantheon  for 

2 


6  Smtday  Legislatio7i, 

a  statue  of  Christ  and  a  statue  of  Moses,  that  they 
might  stand  among  those  representing  the  relig- 
ion of  Egypt  and  of  the  Orient.  It  was  not  pos- 
sible that  Rome  should  recognize  any  religion, 
except  as  wholly  subordinate  to  the  state ;  to  be 
protected  and  regulated  by  the  civil  law.  When, 
therefore,  at  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  century, 
circumstances  combined  to  bring  about  a  recogni- 
tion of  Christianity,  it  was  such  a  recognition  as 
had  been  granted  to  the  ethnic  religions  whose  in- 
fluence had  already  become  interwoven  with 
Roman  thought  and  practices.  Christianity  did 
not  conquer  the  empire  by  subduing  it  to  Christ. 
It  gained  recognition  as  having  a  right  to  the  pro- 
tection and  the  privileges  which  the  state  might 
choose  to  accord.  This  recognition  demanded,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  right  of  the  state  to  legislate 
concerning  Christianity,  and  to  treat  it  as  one  of 
many  other  religions,  neither  greater  nor  less,  ex- 
cept as  its  influence  might  be  greater  or  less  than 
others.  This  general  recognition  was  given  early 
in  the  reign  of  Constantine  the  Great.  It  is  not 
needful  to  delineate  at  length  the  character  of  Con- 
stantine, nor  to  prove  what  none  deny,  that  his 
attitude  toward  Christianity  was  that  of  a  shrewd 
politician  rather  than  of  a  devout  adherent.  Tiie 
empire  was  decaying  under  a  combination  of  ad- 
verse influences.  It  was  dying  in  spite  of  all  the 
gods  had  promised.  Certain  success  had  attended 
his  father,  who  had  shown  some  favor  to  Chris- 
tianity.    Christianity  evinced   great   vigor,  espc- 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  7 

daily  in  giving  to  its  adherents  supreme  power  of 
endurance  under  persecution.  Constantine  saw 
what  seemed  to  him  a  greater  power  for  good  to 
the  empire  in  the  protection  which  this  new  re- 
ligion might  give,  than  any  which  paganism  had 
granted  ;  hence  the  recognition  which  came,  under 
the  normal  operation  of  the  Roman  idea.  The 
emperor,  as  pontifex  maximus^  had  full  power  to 
legislate  concerning  all  matters  of  religion. 

The  influence  of  the  emperor  in  his  double 
office  as  emperor  and  pontifex  maximus,  was  im- 
measurably increased  by  his  deification.  He  was 
not  only  the  supreme  authority  in  all  religious 
matters,  but  he  was  worshiped  as  a  god.  Some 
of  the  more  noble  of  the  emperors  demanded  less 
of  these  honors,"  while  others  demanded  much 
reverence.  One  of  the  most  infamous  is  described 
as  follows : 

Caligula,  however,  who  appears  to  have  been  liter- 
ally deranged,  is  said  to  have  accepted  his  divinity  as  a 
serious  fact,  to  have  substituted  his  own  head  for  that  of 
Jupiter  on  many  of  the  statues,  and  to  have  once  started 
furiously  from  his  seat  during  a  thunderstorm  that  had 
interrupted  a  gladiatorial  show,  shouting,  with  frantic  gest- 
ures, his  imprecations  against  heaven,  and  declaring  that 
the  divided  empire  was  indeed  intolerable ;  that  either 
Jupiter  or  himself  must  speedily  succumb. 

Heliogabalus,  if  we  may  give  any  credence  to  his  biog- 
rapher, confounded  all  things  human  and  divine  in  hid- 
eous and  blasphemous  orgies,  and  designed  to  unite  all 
forms  of  religion  in  the  worship  of  himself. 


8  Stmday  Legislation, 

A  curious  consequence  of  the  apotheosis  was  that  the 
images  of  the  emperors  were  invested  with  a  sacred  char- 
acter, like  those  of  the  gods.  They  were  the  recognized 
refuge  of  the  slave  or  the  oppressed,  and  the  smallest 
disrespect  to  them  was  resented  as  a  heinous  crime. 
Under  Tiberius,  slaves  and  criminals  were  accustomed 
to  hold  in  their  hands  an  image  of  the  emperor,  and  be- 
ing thus  protected,  to  pour  with  impunity  a  torrent  of 
defiant  insolence  upon  their  masters  or  judges.  Under 
the  same  emperor,  a  man  having,  when  drunk,  accident- 
ally touched  a  nameless  domestic  utensil  with  a  ring  on 
which  the  head  of  the  emperor  was  carved,  he  was  im- 
mediately denounced  by  a  spy.  A  man  in  this  reign  was 
accused  of  high  treason  for  having  sold  an  image  of  the 
emperor  with  a  garden.  It  was  made  a  capital  offense 
to  beat  a  slave  or  to  undress  near  a  statue  of  Augustus, 
or  to  enter  a  brothel  with  a  piece  of  money  on  which  his 
head  was  engraved,  and  at  a  later  period,  a  woman,  it  is 
said,  was  actually  executed  for  undressing  before  a  statue 
of  Domitian. 

Leckey,  "  History  of  European  Morals,"  vol.  i, 
pp.  274-276,  New  York,  1869. 

The  pagan  religion  of  Rome  had  many  holi- 
days, on  which  partial  or  complete  cessation  of 
business  and  labor  were  demanded.  The  follow- 
ing extracts  will  illustrate  the  attitude  of  Constan- 
tine,  and  the  legislation  which  preceded  his  Sun- 
day law : 

Constantine,  the  first  Christian  Caesar,  the  founder 
of  Constantinople  and  the  Byzantine  Empire,  and  one  ot 
the  most  gifted,  energetic,  and  successful  of  the  Roman 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  9 

emperors,  was  the  first  representative  of  the  imposing 
idea  of  a  Christian  theocracy,  or  of  that  system  of  policy 
which  assumes  all  subjects  to  be  Christians,  connects 
civil  and  religious  rights,  and  regards  church  and  state 
as  the  two  arms  of  one  and  the  same  divine  government 
on  earth.  This  idea  was  more  fully  developed  by  his 
successors.  It  animated  the  v/hole  middle  age,  and  is 
yet  working  under  various  forms  in  these  latest  times ; 
though  it  has  never  been  fully  realized,  whether  in  the 
Byzantine,  the  German,  or  the  Russian  Empire,  the 
Roman  church-state,  the  Calvanistic  republic  of  Geneva, 
or  the  early  Puritanic  colonies  of  New  England.  At  the 
same  time,  however,  Constantine  stands  also  as  the  type 
of  an  undiscriminating  and  harmful  conjunction  of  Chris- 
tianity with  politics,  of  the  holy  sym.bol  of  peace  with  the 
horrors  of  war,  of  the  spiritual  interests  cf  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  with  the  earthly  interests  of  the  state. 

But  with  the  political  he  united  also  a  religious  mo- 
tive, not  clear  and  deep,  indeed,  yet  honest,  and  strongly 
infused  with  the  superstitious  disposition  to  judge  of  a 
religion  by  its  outward  success  and  to  ascribe  a  magical 
virtue  to  signs  and  ceremonies.  His  whole  family  was 
swayed  by  religious  sentiment,  which  manifested  itself  in 
very  different  forms — in  the  devout  pilgrimages  of  Hele- 
na, the  fanatical  Arianism  of  Constantia  and  Constantius, 
and  the  fanatical  paganism  of  Julian.  Constantine 
adopted  Christianity  first  as  a  superstition,  and  put  it  by 
the  side  of  his  heathen  superstition,  till  finally  in  his  con- 
viction the  Christian  vanquished  the  pagan,  though  with- 
out itself  developing  into  a  pure  and  enlightened  faith. 

At  first  Constantine,  like  his  father,  in  the  spirit  of 
the  Neoplatonic  syncretism  of  dying  heathendom,  rev- 
erenced  all  the  gods  as  mysterious  powers,  especially 


lO  Sunday  Legislation, 

Apollo,  the  god  of  the  sun,  to  whom,  in  the  year  308, 
he  presented  munificent  gifts.  Nay,  so  late  as  the  year 
321  he  enjoined  regular  consultation  of  the  soothsay- 
ers in  public  misfortunes,  according  to  ancient  heathen 
usage ;  even  later  he  placed  his  new  residence,  By- 
zantium, under  the  protection  of  the  god  of  the  mar- 
tyrs and  the  heathen  goddess  of  Fortune  ;  and  down  to 
the  end  of  his  life  he  retained  the  title  and  the  dignity 
of  a  pontifex  tnaximus,  or  high-priest  of  the  heathen 
hierarchy.  His  coins  bore  on  the  one  side  the  letters  of 
the  name  of  Christ,  on  the  other  the  figure  of  the  sun- 
god,  and  the  inscription  ''  Sol  i7ivictus''  Of  course 
these  inconsistencies  may  be  referred  also  to  policy  and 
accommodation  to  the  toleration  edict  of  313.  Nor  is 
it  difficult  to  adduce  parallels  of  persons  who,  in  passing 
from  Judaism  to  Christianity,  or  from  Romanism  to 
Protestantism,  have  so  wavered  between  their  old  and 
their  new  position  that  they  might  be  claimed  by  both. 
With  his  every  victory  over  his  pagan  rivals,  Galerius, 
Maxentius,  and  Licinius,  his  personal  leaning  to  Chris- 
tianity, and  his  confidence  in  the  magic  power  of  the 
sign  of  the  cross  increased  ;  yet  he  did  not  formally  re- 
nounce heathenism  and  did  not  receive  baptism  until,  in 
337,  he  was  laid  upon  the  bed  of  death. 

Schaff,  "  Church  History  "  (revised  edition),  vol. 
iii,  pp.  12,  14,  15. 

Uhlhorn  says  of  Constantine  : 

At  the  beginning  of  A.  d.  312,  he  seemed,  to  say  the 
least,  cool  and  non-committal.  He  had  issued  the  edict 
of  Galerius,  and  the  orders  concerning  its  execution, 
which,  as  we  liave  seen,  were  but  little  favorable  to 
Christianity.     He  was  no  doubt  even  then  a  monotheist ; 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  ii 

but  the  one  god  whom  he  worshiped  was  rather  the 
sun-god,  the  "  unconquered  sun,"  than  the  Father  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  But  at  the  beginning  of  a.  d.  313, 
he  issued  the  edict  of  Milan,  which  was  extraordinarily- 
favorable  to  the  Christians,  and  took  the  first  decisive 
steps  toward  raising  Christianity  to  the  position  of  a 
dominant  religion. 

"  Conflict  between  Heathenism  and  Christianity,'* 
p.  427. 

Joseph  Bingham,  the  well-known  writer  on 
church  antiquities,  speaking  of  Constantine's  Sun- 
day edict,  says  : 

This  was  the  same  respect  as  the  old  Roman  laws 
had  paid  to  \k).€\x  feriae^  or  festivals,  in  times  of  idolatry 
and  superstition.  .  .  .  Now,  as  the  old  Roman  laws  ex- 
empted the  festivals  of  the  heathen  from  all  judicial 
business,  and  suspended  all  processes  and  pleadings,  ex- 
cept in  the  aforementioned  cases,  so  Constantine  ordered 
that  the  same  respect  should  be  paid  to  the  Lord's  day, 
that  it  should  be  a  day  of  perfect  vacation  from  all 
prosecutions  and  pleadings  and  business  of  the  law,  ex- 
cept where  any  case  of  great  necessity  or  charity  required 
a  judicial  process  and  public  transaction. 

''  Antiquities  of  the  Christian  Church,"  book  xx, 
chap,  ii,  sec.  2. 

Bingham  states  here  clearly  the  fact  that  such 
prohibitions  were  made  by  the  Roman  laws  in 
favor  of  their  festivals,  but  adds,  incorrectly,  that 
Constantine  made  the  same  in  favor  of  the  "  Lord's 
day,'*  for,  as  we  shall  see,  it  was  not  the  Lord's 
day,  but  the  "  venerable  day  of  the  sun,"  which 


12  Sunday  Legislation, 

the  edict  mentions ;  and  it  is  impossible  to  sup- 
pose that  a  law,  made  by  a  Christian  prince  in 
favor  of  a  Christian  institution,  should  not  in  any 
way  mention  that  institution  or  hint  that  the  law 
was  designed  to  apply  to  it.  Milman  corrobo- 
rates this  idea  as  follows : 

The  earlier  laws  of  Constantine,  though  in  their 
effect  favorable  to  Christianity,  claimed  some  deference, 
as  it  were,  to  the  ancient  religion,  in  the  ambiguity  of 
their  language,  and  the  cautious  terms  in  which  they  in- 
terfered with  the  liberty  of  paganism.  The  rescript 
commanding  the  celebration  of  the  Christian  Sabbath 
bears  no  allusion  to  its  peculiar  sanctity  as  a  Christian 
institution.  It  is  the  day  of  the  sun  which  is  to  be 
observed  by  the  general  veneration  ;  the  courts  were  to 
be  closed,  and  the  noise  and  tumult  of  public  business 
and  legal  litigation  were  no  longer  to  violate  the  repose 
of  the  sacred  day.  But  the  believer  in  the  new  pagan- 
ism, of  which  the  solar  worship  was  the  characteristic, 
might  acquiesce  without  scruple  in  the  sanctity  of  the 
first  day  of  the  week.  .  .  . 

The  rescript,  indeed,  for  the  religious  observance  of 
the  Sunday,  which  enjoined  the  suspension  of  all  public 
business  and  private  labor,  except  that  of  agriculture, 
was  enacted,  according  to  the  apparent  terms  of  the  de- 
cree, for  the  whole  Roman  Empire.  Yet  unless  we  had 
direct  proof  that  the  decree  set  forth  the  Christian  reason 
for  the  sanctity  of  the  day,  it  may  be  doubted  whether 
the  act  would  not  be  received  by  the  greater  part  of  the 
empire  as  merely  addirig  one  more  festival  to  the  fasti  of 
the  empire,  as  proceeding  entirely  from  the  will  of  the 
emperor,  or  even  grounded  on  his  authority  as  supreme 


Origin  and  Philosophy,  13 

pontiff,  by  which  he  had  the  plenary  power  of  appoint- 
ing holy  days.  In  fact,  as  we  have  before  observed,  the 
day  of  the  sun  would  be  willingly  hallowed  by  almost 
all  the  pagan  world,  especially  that  part  which  had  ad- 
mitted any  tendency  toward  the  Oriental  theology. 

"  History    of    Christianity,"    book    iii,    chaps,  i 
and  iv. 

Stronger  still  is  the  testimony  of  an  English 
barrister,  Edward  V.  Neale.  These  are  his 
words : 

That  the  division  of  days  into  juridici  et  feriaii, 
judicial  and  non-judicial,  did  not  arise  out  of  the  modes 
of  thought  peculiar  to  the  Christian  world,  must  be 
known  to  every  classical  scholar.  Before  the  age  of 
Augustus  the  number  of  days  upon  which,  out  of  rever- 
ence to  the  gods  to  whom  they  were  consecrated,  no 
trials  could  take  place  at  Rome,  had  become  a  resource 
upon  which  a  wealthy  criminal  could  speculate  as  a 
means  of  evading  justice  ;  and  Suetonius  enumerates 
among  the  praiseworthy  acts  of  that  emperor,  the  cut- 
ting off  from  the  number  thirty  days,  in  order  that 
crime  might  not  go  unpunished  nor  business  be  impeded. 
*'  Feasts  and  Fasts,"  pp.  5  and  6. 

After  enumeratino^  certain  kinds  of  business 
which  were  allowed  under  these  general  laws,  Mr. 
Neale  adds  : 

Such  was  the  state  of  the  laws  with  respect  to  ju- 
dicial proceedings  while  the  empire  was  still  heathen. 

Ibid.,  p.  7. 


14  Sunday  Legislatioru 

Concerning  the  suspension  of  labor,  we  learn 
from  the  same  author  that — 

The  practice  of  abstaining  from  various  sorts  of  la- 
bor upon  days  consecrated  by  religious  observances,  like 
that  of  suspending  at  such  seasons  judicial  proceedings, 
was  familiar  to  the  Roman  world  before  the  introduction 
of  Christian  ideas.  Virgil  enumerates  the  rural  labors 
which  might,  on  festal  days,  be  carried  on  without  en- 
trenching upon  the  prohibitions  of  religion  and  right, 
and  the  enumeration  shows  that  many  works  were  con- 
sidered as  forbidden.  Thus  it  appears  that  it  was  per- 
mitted to  clean  out  the  channels  of  an  old  water-course, 
but  not  to  make  a  new  one  ;  to  wash  the  herd  or  flock, 
if  such  washing  was  needful  for  their  health,  but  not 
otherwise  ;  to  guard  the  crop  from  injury  by  setting 
snares  for  birds,  or  fencing  in  the  grain  ;  and  to  burn 
unproductive  thorns. 

"  Feasts  and  Fasts,"  p.  ZG,  ci  seq. 

Sir  Henry  Spelman,  who  is  recognized  as 
high  authority,  in  discussing  the  origin  of  prac- 
tices in  the  English  courts,  says  that  all  ancient 
nations  prohibited  legal  proceedings  on  sacred 
days.     His  words  are  these : 

To  be  short,  it  was  so  common  a  thing  in  those  days 
of  old  to  exempt  the  times  of  exercise  of  religion  from 
all  worldly  business  that  the  barbarous  nations,  even  our 
Ancrli^  while  they  were  yet  in  Germany,  the  Suevians 
themselves,  and  others  in  those  northern  parts  would  in 
nowise  violate  or  interrupt  it.  Tacitus  says  of  them 
that  during  this  time  of  holy  rites,  non  bellum  ineunt,  non 


Origi7i  and  Philosophy.  15 

arma  sumunt.    Ciaustwt  omne  ferrum.     Pax  et  quies  tunc 
iantum  nota^  tunc  tantum  amat. 

Speaking  of  the  origin  of  the  English  "  court 
terms,"  Spelman  says : 

I  will  therefore  seek  the  original  of  our  terms  only 
from  the  Romans,  as  all  other  nations  that  have  been 
subject  to  their  civil  and  ecclesiastical  monarch  do  and 
must. 

The  ancient  Romans,  v/hile  they  were  yet  heathens, 
did  not,  as  we  at  this  day,  use  certain  continual  portions 
of  thQyear  for  a  legal  decision  of  controversies,  but  out 
of  superstitious  conceit  that  some  days  were  ominous 
and  more  unlucky  than  others  (according  to  that  of  the 
Egyptians),  they  made  one  day  to  be  fastus  or  terjn  day 
and  another  (as  an  Egyptian  day)  to  be  vacation,  or 
nefastus;  seldom  two  fast  or  law  days  together;  yea, 
they  sometimes  divided  one  and  the  same  day  in  this 
manner : 

Qui  modo  fastus  erat,  mum  iiefastus  erat. 

The  afternoon  was  term,  the  morning  holy  day.  Nor 
were  all  their  fasti  applied  to  judicature,  but  some  of 
them  to  other  meetings  and  consultations  of  the  com- 
monwealth ;  so  that  being  divided  into  three  sorts, 
which  they  called  fastos  proprie,  fastos  endotercisos^  and 
fastos  comitialeSy  containing  together  one  hundred  and 
eighty-four  days  through  all  the  months  of  the  year, 
there  remained  not  properly  to  the  pretor,  as  judicial  or 
triverbial  days,  above  twenty-eight. 

**  English  Works  from  Original  MS.  in  Bodleian 
Library,"  book  ii,  p.  75. 


1 6  Stmday  Legislation. 

Why  such  legislation  was  easily  developed  in 
connection  with  the  Romanized  Christianity  of 
the  fourth  century,  is  set  forth  in  the  following : 

The  Latin  mind,  less  speculative,  more  practical,  po- 
litical rather  than  theological  in  genius,  \yhile  it  touched 
doctrine  only  to  exaggerate  it,  often  in  a  very  dismal 
way,  was  yet  able  to  frame  a  church  polity  on  the  old 
imperial  model,  to  build  a  civitas  Dei  where  the  civitas 
Ro7na  once  stood,  giving  to  its  visible  head  such  abso- 
lute authority  and  divine  honors  as  the  emperors  had 
once  claimed,  to  its  subjects  such  rights  and  privileges, 
only  spirituaUzed,  as  the  Roman  citizen  had  once  en- 
joyed. 

"Philosophy   of  Religion   and    History,"  A.  M. 
Fairbairn,  p.  302,  New  York,  1876. 

Many  influences  combined  to  bring  about  an 
unholy  union  between  Christianity  and  Paganism 
at  this  time.  The  policy  which  Constantine  pur- 
sued and  the  effect  of  it  are  well  set  forth  in  the 
following  extracts  from  high  authority : 

About  the  year  300,  and  since  prosperity  produced 
many  ceremonies,  the  people  (from  Constantine's  com- 
pulsion) presented  themselves  in  troops  to  crowd  into 
the  church.  But  the  simplicity  of  Christianity  disgusted 
many  who  retained  before  their  eyes  the  pomp  and 
magnificence  of  paganism,  wherefore  it  was  thought  ex- 
pedient to  clothe  religion  with  more  splendid  ceremonies 
that  so  the  splendor  of  these  ornaments  might  render  it 
more  august  and  recommendable. 

But,  after  Constantine  had  constrained  all  to  make 


Origin  and  Philosophy.  17 

a  public  profession  of  Christianity,  and  Julian  had  re- 
vived the  old  demon  worship,  the  carnal  professors  of 
Christianity,  who  were  most  numerous,  though  they  were 
content  to  assume  the  name  of  Christians,  yet  were  they 
not  content  to  part  with  their  pagan  rites  and  customs ; . 
wherefore,  to  compromise  the  matter,  they  turn  their 
pagan  rites  into  Christian  solemnities ;  and  so  christen 
their  demon  festivals  under  the  name  of  some  Christian 
martyr  and  saint.  And  that  which  made  this  design 
more  plausible  was  this,  some  groundless  hopes,  by  such 
symbolizing  with  the  pagans  to  gain  them  over  to  the 
embracing  of  the  Christian  religion,  which  vain  attempt 
was  so  far  blasted  by  God  as  that  it  proved  but  a  door 
to  let  in  anti-Christ  and  all  his  demon  worship  into  the 
Church  of  God. 

''Court  of  the  Gentiles,"  by    Theophilus   Gale, 

part  iii,  book  ii,  chap,  ii,  sec.  3,  paragraphs 

2  and  6. 


CHAPTER  II. 

SUNDAY  LEGISLATION  UNDER  THE  ROMAN   EMPIRE. 

The  preceding  chapter  shows  that  there  was 
nothing  new  in  the  legislation  by  Constantine  con- 
cerning the  Sunday.  It  was  as  much  a  part  of 
the  pagan  cultus,  as  the  similar  legislation  con- 
cerning other  days  which  had  preceded  it.  Such 
legislation  could  not  spring  from  Apostolic  Chris- 
tianity. Every  element  of  that  Christianity  for- 
bade such  interference  by  the  state.  The  pagan 
character  of  this  first  Sunday  legislation  is  clearly 
shown,  not  only  by  the  facts  above  stated,  but  by 
the  nature  and  spirit  of  the  law  itself.  Sunday  is 
mentioned  only  by  its  pagan  name,  *'  venerable 
day  of  the  sun."  Nothing  is  said  of  any  relation 
to  Christianity.  No  trace  of  the  resurrection-fes- 
tival idea  appears.  No  reference  is  made  to  the 
Fourth  Commandment  or  the  Sabbath,  or  anything 
connected  with  it.  The  law  Avas  made  for  all  the 
empire.  It  applied  to  every  subject  alike.  The 
fact,  that  on  the  day  following  the  publication  of 
the  edict  concerning  the  Sunday,  another  was  is- 
sued, ordering  that  the  aruspices  be  consulted  in 
case  of  public  calamity,  which   was  thoroughly 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  19 

pagan  in  every  particular,  shows  the  attitude  of 
the  emperor  and  the  influences  which  controlled 
him. 

The  following  is  the  complete  text  of  the  laws 
just  referred  to.  It  will  repay  the  reader  for  pro- 
longed and  careful  study  : 

First  Sunday  Edict. 

Let  all  judges  and  all  city  people  and  all  tradesmen 
rest  upon  the  venzrable  day  of  the  sun.  But  let  those 
dwelling  in  the  country  freely  and  with  full  liberty  attend 
to  the  culture  of  their  fields  ;  since  it  frequently  happens 
that  no  other  day  is  so  fit  for  the  sowing  of  grain,  or  the 
planting  of  vines ;  hence,  the  favorable  time  should  not 
be  allowed  to  pass,  lest  the  provisions  of  heaven  be  lost. 

Given  the  seventh  of  March,  Crispus  and  Constantine 
being  consuls,  each  for  the  second  time  (321). 

"Codex  Justin,"  lib.  iii,  tit.  xii,  1.  3. 

Edict  Concerning  Aruspices. 

The  August  Emperor  Constantine  to  Maximus  : 
If  any  part  of  the  palace  or  other  public  works  shell 
be  struck  by  lightning,  let  the  soothsayers,  following  old 
usages,  inquire  into  the  meaning  of  the  portent,  and  let 
their  written  words,  very  carefully  collected,  be  reported 
to  our  knowledge  ;  and  also  let  the  liberty  of  making  use 
of  this  custom  be  accorded  to  others,  provided  they  ab- 
stain from  private  sacrifices,  which  are  specially  pro- 
hibited. 

Moreover,  that  declaration  and  exposition,  written  in 
respect  to  the  amphitheatre  being  struck  by  lightning. 


20  Sunday  Legislatio7i, 

concerning  which  you  had  written  to  Heraclianus,  the 
tribune,  and  master  of  offices,  you  may  know  has  been 
reported  to  us. 

Dated,  the  i6th,  before  the  calends  of  January,  at 
Serdica  (320),  Ace.  the  8th,  before  the  Ides  of  March, 
in  the  consulship  of  Crispus  II  and  Constantine  III, 
Caesars  Coss.  (321). 

*'  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  xvi,  tit.  x,  1.  i. 

It  will  be  difficult  for  those  who  are  accus- 
tomed to  consider  Constantine  a  "  Christian  em- 
peror" to  understand  how  he  could  have  put 
forth  the  above  edicts.  The  facts  which  crowd  the 
preceding-  century  will  fully  answer  this  inquiry. 
The  sun-worship  cult  had  grown  steadily  in  the 
Roman  Empire  for  a  long  time.  In  the  century 
which  preceded  Constantine's  time,  specific  efforts 
had  been  made  to  give  it  prominence  over  all 
other  systems  of  religion.  The  efforts  made  un- 
der Heliogabalus  (218-222  A.  d.)  marked  the 
ripening  influence  of  that  cult,  both  as  a  power  to 
control  and  an  influence  to  degrade  Roman  life. 
The  following  quotations  will  set  the  facts  before 
our  readers,  and  may  be  more  satisfactory  to  them 
than  would  be  the  statement  of  these  facts  from 
our  pen.  When  given  due  weight  they  explain 
fully  the  nature  of  Constantine's  legislation,  as 
well  as  that  of  much  which  followed  his  time. 
Schaff  describes  Heliogabalus  in  the  following 
words : 

The  abandoned  youth,  El-Gabal  or  Heliogabalus 
(218-222),  who  polluted  the  throne  by  the  blackest  vices 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  21 

and  follies,  tolerated  all  the  religions  in  the  hope  of  at 
last  merging  them  in  his  favorite  Syrian  worship  of  the 
sun  with  its  abominable  excesses.  He  himself  was  a 
priest  of  the  god  of  the  sun,  and  thence  took  his  name. 
*'  History  of  the  Christian  Church  "  (revised  edi- 
tion), vol.  ii,  p.  58. 

Gibbon  describes  the  same  period  in  the  fol- 
lowing words : 

The  sun  was  v/orshiped  at  Emesa,  under  the  name  of 
Elagabalus,  and  under  the  form  of  a  black  conical  stone, 
which,  as  it  was  universally  believed,  had  fallen  from 
heaven  on  that  sacred  place.  To  this  protecting  deity 
Antoninus,  not  without  some  reason,  ascribed  his  eleva- 
tion to  the  throne.  The  display  of  superstitious  gratitude 
was  the  only  serious  business  of  his  reign.  The  triumph  of 
the  god  of  Emesa  over  all  the  religions  of  the  earth  was 
the  great  object  of  his  zeal  and  vanity;  and  the  appella- 
tion of  Elagabalus  (for  he  presumed,  as  pontiff  and  fav- 
orite, to  adopt  that  sacred  name)  was  dearer  to  him  than 
all  the  titles  of  imperial  greatness.  In  a  solemn  proces- 
sion through  the  streets  of  Rome,  the  way  was  strewed 
with  gold-dust,  the  black  stone,  set  in  precious  gems, 
was  placed  on  a  chariot  drawn  by  six  milk-white  horses, 
richly  caparisoned.  The  pious  emperor  held  the  reins, 
and,  supported  by  his  ministers,  moved  slowly  backward, 
that  he  might  perpetually  enjoy  the  felicity  of  the  divine 
presence.  In.a  magnificent  temple  raised  on  the  Palatine 
mount,  the  sacrifices  of  the  god  Elagabalus  were  cele- 
brated with  every  circumstance  of  cost  and  solemnity. 
The  richest  wines,  the  most  extraordinary  victims,  and 
the  rarest  aromatics  were  profusely  consumed  on  his 
3 


22  Smiday  Legislation, 

altar.  Around  the  altar  a  chorus  of  Syrian  damsels  per- 
formed their  lascivious  dances  to  the  sound  of  barbarian 
music,  while  the  gravest  personages  of  the  state  and 
army,  clothed  in  long  Phoenician  tunics,  officiated  in  the 
meanest  functions  with  affected  zeal  and  secret  indig- 
nation. 

To  this  temple,  as  to  the  common  center  of  religious 
worship,  the  imperial  fanatic  attempted  to  remove  the  An- 
cilia,  the  Paladium,  and  all  the  sacred  pledges  of  the  faith 
of  Numa.  A  crowd  of  inferior  deities  attended  in  vari- 
ous stations  the  majesty  of  the  god  of  Emesa  ;  but  his 
court  was  still  imperfect,  till  a  female  of  distinguished 
rank  was  admitted  to  his  bed.  Pallas  had  been  first 
chosen  for  his  consort,  but  as  it  was  dreaded  lest  her 
warlike  terrors  might  affright  the  soft  delicacy  of  a  Syr- 
ian deity,  the  moon,  adored  by  the  Africans  under  the 
name  of  Astarte,  was  deemed  a  more  suitable  companion 
for  the  sun.  Her  image,  with  the  rich  offerings  of  her 
temple  as  a  marriage  portion,  was  transported  with 
solemn  pomp  from  Carthage  to  Rome,  and  the  day  of 
these  mystic  nuptials  was  a  general  festival  in  the  capital 
and  throughout  the  empire. 

"  Decline  and  Fall,"  etc.,  vol.  i,  pp.  170,  171,  New 
York,  Harper  and  Brothers. 

Heliogabalus  is  further  described  in  these 
words: 

He  made  it  his  business  to  exalt  the  honor  of  the 
deity  whose  priest  he  was.  The  Syrian  god  was  pro- 
claimed the  chief  deity  in  Rome,  and  all  other  gods  his 
servants.  Splendid  ceremonies  in  his  honor  were  cele- 
brated, at  which  Heliogabalus  danced  in  public  ;  and  it 
was  believed  that  secret  rites,  accompanied  by  human 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  23 

sacrifice,  were  performed  in  his  honor.  The  shameless 
profligacy  of  the  emperor's  Hfe  was  such  as  to  shock  even 
a  Roman  public. 

"Encyclopaedia  Britannica,"  vol.  xi,  p.  564  (9th 
edition). 

Under  such  an  emperor  came  the  triumph  of 
Orientalism  in  the  West.  The  sun-worship  cult 
was  peculiarly  akin  to  the  declining  character  of  the 
Roman  Empire.  The  lower  phases,  which  found 
such  revolting  expression  in  the  Baal  worship, 
that  contaminated  the  children  of  Israel,  found  a 
welcome  place  in  the  corrupted  social  life  of  dy- 
ing Rome.  Hence  this  cultus  continued  and  flour- 
ished during  succeeding  reigns.  Aurelian  reigned 
from  270-276  A.  D.  Speaking  of  the  magnificent 
"  Triumph  "  of  this  emperor  in  274  A.  D.,  Gibbon 
says: 

So  long  and  so  various  v/as  the  pomp  of  Aurelians' 
triumph,  that  although  it  opened  with  the  dawn  of  day, 
the  slow  majesty  of  the  procession  ascended  not  the 
Capitol  before  the  ninth  hour  ;  and  it  was  already  dark 
when  the  emperor  returned  to  the  palace.  The  festival 
was  protracted  by  theatrical  representations,  the  games 
of  the  circus,  the  hunting  of  wild  beasts,  combats  of 
gladiators,  and  naval  engagements.  .  .  . 

A  considerable  portion  of  his  Oriental  spoils  was  con- 
secrated to  the  gods  of  Rome,  the  Capitol,  and  every 
other  temple,  glittered  with  the  offerings  of  his  ostenta- 
tious piety ;  and  the  Temple  of  the  Sun  alone  received 
above  fifteen  thousand  pounds  of  gold.  This  last  was  a 
magnificent  structure,   erected  by  the  emperor  on  the 


24  Sunday  Legislation. 

side  of  the  Quirinal  Hill,  and  dedicated  soon  after  the 
triumph,  to  that  deity  whom  Aurelian  adored  as  the 
parent  of  his  life  and  fortunes.  His  mother  had  been  an 
inferior  priestess  in  a  chapel  of  the  sun ;  a  peculiar  de- 
votion to  the  god  of  light  was  a  sentiment  which  the 
fortunate  peasant  imbibed  in  his  infancy ;  and  every  step 
of  his  elevation,  every  victory  of  his  reign,  fortified  super- 
stition by  gratitude  (vol.  i,  p.  361). 

In  foot-notes,  Gibbon  further  says : 

He  placed  in  it  the  images  of  Belus  and  of  the  sun, 
which  he  had  brought  from  Palmyra.  .  .  .  His  devotion 
to  the  sun  appears  in  his  letters,  on  his  medals,  and  is 
mentioned  in  the  "Cassars  of  Julian." 

Speaking  of  Diocletian,  who  reigned  from  284 
to  305,  Milman  says: 

The  universal  deity  of  the  earth,  the  sun,  to  the  philo- 
sophic, was  the  emblem  or  representative ;  to  the  vulgar, 
the  deity.  Diocletian  himself,  though  he  paid  so  much 
deference  to  the  older  faith  as  to  assume  the  title  of 
Jovius  as  belonging  to  tlie  lord  of  the  world,  yet,  on  his 
accession,  when  he  would  exculpate  himself  from  all 
concern  in  the  murder  of  his  predecessor,  Numerian, 
appealed  in  the  face  of  the  army  to  the  all-seeing  deity  of 
the  sun.  It  is  the  oracle  of  Apollo  of  Miletus,  consulted 
by  the  hesitating  emperor,  which  is  to  decide  the  fate  of 
Christianity.  The  metaphorical  language  of  Christian- 
ity had  unconsciously  lent  strength  to  this  new  adver- 
sary; and  in  adoring  the  visible  orb,  some,  no  doubt, 
supposed  that  they  were  not  departing  far  from  the  wor- 
ship of  the  "Sun  of  Righteousness." 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  25 

In  a  foot-note,  Milman  adds : 

Hermogenes,  one  of  the  older  heresiarchs,  applied 
the  text,  "  He  has  placed  his  tabernacle  in  the  sun,"  to 
Christ,  and  asserted  that  Christ  had  put  off  his  body  in 
the  sun. 

"History  of  Christianity,"  vol.  ii,  p.  215. 

The  Manichseans,  who  arose  about  this  time  in 
Persia,  present  another  phase  of  the  sun-worship 
cult.  They  spread  through  the  East  and  West  in 
considerable  numbers,  and  continued  till  into  the 
fifth  or  sixth  century.  From  Milman  we  learn  the 
important  fact  that  they  were  not  only  sun-wor- 
shipers, but  observers  of  the  Sun-day.      He  says : 

The  worship  of  the  Manichaeans  was  simple ;  they 
built  no  altars,  they  raised  no  temple,  they  had  no 
images,  they  had  no  imposing  ceremonial.  Pure  and 
simple  prayer  was  their  only  form  of  adoration ;  they 
did  not  celebrate  the  birth  of  Christ,  for  of  his  birth 
they  denied  the  reality ;  their  paschal  feast,  as  they 
equally  disbelieved  the  reality  of  Christ's  passion,  though 
they  kept  it  holy,  had  little  of  the  Christian  form. 
Prayers  addressed  to  the  sun,  or  at  least  with  their  faces 
directed  to  that  tabernacle  in  which  Christ  dwelt ;  hymns 
to  the  great  principle  of  light ;  exhortations  to  subdue 
the  dark  and  sensual  element  within  ;  and  the  study  of 
the  marvelous  "  Book  of  Mani  " — constituted  their  de- 
votion.    They  observed  the  Lord's  day. 

Ibid.y  vol.  ii,  p.  274. 

In  the  last  remark  Milman  scarcely  saves  him- 
self from  the  charge  of  an  absolute  misstatment. 


26  Sunday  Legislation. 

The  Manicheeans  did  not  observe  Sunday  as  the 
"  Lord's  day,"  their  doctrine  concerning  Christ 
forbidding  such  observance.  The  fact  that  Sun- 
day was  known  at  this  date  by  some  as  the 
''  Lord's  day  "  alone  saves  the  historian  from  ab- 
solute falsehood,  when  he  states  that  ''  they  ob- 
served the  Lord's  day."  It  will  be  seen  by  the 
following  that  their  observance  of  Sunday  was 
purely  a  pagan  observance.  Geisler  says  of 
them  : 

The  worship  of  the  Manich^ans  was  extremely  sim- 
ple.    They  celebrated  the  Sunday  only  by  fasting. 

"Ecclesiastical  History,"  vol.  i,  p.  133,  Philadel- 
phia, 1836. 

Neander  says  of  them  : 

In  regard  to  the  festivals  of  the  Manichees,  we  may 
observe  that  they  celebrated  Sunday  not  as  commemo- 
rating the  resurrection  of  Christ,  which    did   not   suit 
their  Docetism,  but  as  the  day  consecrated  to  the  sun, 
who  was,  in  fact,  their  Christ.     In  contradiction  to  the 
prevailing  usage  of  the  Church,  they  fasted  on  this  day. 
"  History  of  the  Church  during  the  First  Three 
Centuries,"  Rose's  translation,  p.  316,  Phila- 
delphia, 1884. 

Such  were  the  influences  which  preceded  Con- 
stantine  and  surrounded  him  when  he  came  into 
power.  The  following  extracts  show  still  plainer 
the  character  of  Constantine  and  his  attitude  to- 
ward the  sun-worship  cultus,  wlien  the  first  ''  Sun- 
day edict "  was  issued  ; 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  27 

Whatever  symptoms  of  Christian  piety  might  trans- 
pire in  the  discourses  or  actions  of  Constantine,  he  per- 
severed till  he  was  near  forty  years  of  age  in  the  prac- 
tice of  the  established  religion  ;  and  the  same  conduct 
which,  in  the  court  of  Nicomedia,  might  be  imputed  to 
his  fear,  could  be  ascribed  only  to  the  inclination  or 
policy  of  the  sovereign  of  Gaul.  His  liberality  restored 
and  enriched  the  temples  of  the  gods;  the  medals  which 
issued  from  his  imperial  mint  are  impressed  with  the 
figures  and  attributes  of  Jupiter  and  Apollo,  of  Mars  and 
Hercules ;  and  his  filial  piety  increased  the  council  of 
Olympus  by  the  solemn  apotheosis  of  his  father,  Con- 
stantius. 

But  the  devotion  of  Constantine  was  more  peculiarly 
directed  to  the  genius  of  the  Sun,  the  Apollo  of  Greek 
and  Roman  mythology,  and  he  was  pleased  to  be  repre- 
sented with  the  symbols  of  the  God  of  Light  and  Poetry. 
The  unerring  shafts  of  the  deity,  the  brightness  of  his 
eyes,  his  laurel  wreath,  immortal  beauty,  and  elegant 
accomplishments  seem  to  point  him  out  as  the  patron  of 
the  young  hero.  The  altars  of  Apollo  were  crowned 
with  the'  votive  offerings  of  Constantine,  and  the  credu- 
lous multitude  were  taught  to  believe  that  the  emperor 
was  permitted  to  behold  with  mortal  eyes  the  visible 
majesty  of  their  tutelar  deity,  and  that  either  waking  or 
in  a  vision  he  was  blessed  with  the  auspicious  omens  of 
a  long  and  victorious  reign.  The  sun  was  universally 
celebrated  as  the  invincible  guide  and  protector  of  Con- 
stantine, and  the  pagans  might  reasonably  expect  that 
the  insulted  god  would  pursue  v/ith  unrelenting  venge- 
ance the  impiety  of  his  ungrateful  favorite. 
Gibbon's  "Decline,"  etc.,  vol. 


28  Sunday  Legislation, 

Schaff  says  of  Constantine  : 

Yet  he  had  great  faults.  He  was  far  from  being  so 
pure  and  so  venerable  as  Eusebius  (blinded  by  his  favor 
to  the  Church)  depicts  him  in  his  bombastic  and  almost 
dishonestly  eulogistic  biography,  with  the  evident  inten- 
tion of  setting  him  up  as  a  model  for  all  future  Christian 
princes.  It  must,  with  all  regret,  be  conceded  that  his 
progress  in  the  knowledge  of  Christianity  was  not  a 
progress  in  the  practice  of  its  virtues.  His  love  of  dis- 
play and  his  prodigality,  his  suspiciousness  and  his  des- 
potism, increased  with  his  power.  The  very  brightest 
period  of  his  reign  is  stained  with  gross  crimes,  which 
even  the  spirit  of  the  age  and  the  policy  of  an  absolute 
monarch  can  not  excuse.  After  having  reached  upon 
the  bloody  path  of  war  the  goal  of  his  ambition,  the  sole 
possession  of  the  empire,  yea,  in  the  very  year  in  which 
he  summoned  the  great  council  of  Nicsea  he  ordered 
the  execution  of  his  conquered  rival  and  brother-in-law, 
Licinius,  in  breach  of  a  solemn  promise  of  mercy  (324). 
Not  satisfied  with  this,  he  caused  soon  afterward,  from 
political  suspicion,  the  death  of  the  young  Licinius,  his 
nephew,  a  boy  of  hardly  eleven  years.  But  the  worst  of 
all  is  the  murder  of  his  eldest  son,  Crispus,  in  326,  who 
had  incurred  suspicion  of  political  conspiracy,  and  of 
adulterous  and  incestuous  purposes  toward  his  step- 
mother, Fausta,  but  is  generally  regarded  innocent.  .  .  . 

At  all  events,  Christianity  did  not  produce  in  Con- 
stantine a  thorough  moral  transformation.  He  was  con- 
cerned more  to  advance  the  outward  social  position  of 
the  Christian  religion  than  to  further  its  inward  mission. 
He  was  praised  and  censured  in  turn  by  the  Christians 
and  pagans,  the  orthodox  and  the  Arians,  as  they  sue- 


Under  the  Roman  Empire.  29 

cessively  experienced  his  favor  or  dislike.  .  .  .  When,  at 
last,  on  his  death-bed,  he  submitted  to  baptism,  with  the 
remark,  ''Now  let  us  cast  away  all  duplicity^''  he  hon- 
estly admitted  the  conflict  of  two  antagonistic  principles 
which  swayed  his  private  character  and  public  life. 

"Church  History,"  vol.  iii,  p.  16,  et  seq.  (revised 
edition),  1884. 

The  degenerate  state  of  the  Church  during  the 
Constantinian  period,  through  the  admixture  of 
heathen  influences,  is  also  set  forth  by  Dr.  Schafl 
as  follows : 

In  the  Christian  martyr-worship  and  saint-worship 
which  now  spread  with  giant  strides  over  the  whole 
Christian  world,  we  can  not  possibly  mistake  the  succes- 
sion of  the  pagan  worship  of  gods  and  heroes  with  its 
noisy  popular  festivities.  Augustine  puts  into  the  mouth 
of  a  heathen  the  question,  "Wherefore  must  we  for- 
sake gods  which  the  Christians  themselves  worship  with 
us  ?  "  He  deplores  the  frequent  revels  and  amusements 
at  the  tombs  of  the  martyrs,  though  he  thinks  that  allow- 
ances should  be  made  for  these  weaknesses  out  of  regard 
to  the  ancient  custom.  Leo  the  Great  speaks  of  Chris- 
tians in  Rome  who  first  worshiped  the  rising  sun  doing 
homage  to  the  pagan  Apollo  before  repairing  to  the 
basilica  of  St.  Peter.  Theodoret  defends  the  Christian 
practices  at  the  graves  of  the  martyrs  by  pointing  to  the 
pagan  libations,  propitiations,  gods,  and  demigods. 
Since  Hercules,  ^sculapius,  Bacchus,  the  Dioscuri,  and 
many  other  objects  of  pagan  worship  were  mere  deified 
men,  the  Christians,  he  thinks,  can  not  be  blamed  for 
honoring  their  martyrs — not  making  them  gods,  but 
venerating  them  as  witnesses  and  servants  of  the  only 


30  Simday  Legislation, 

true  God.  Chrysostom  mourns  over  the  theatrical  cus- 
toms, such  as  loud  clapping  in  applause,  which  the 
Christians  at  Antioch  and  Constantinople  brought  with 
them  into  the  Church.  In  the  Christmas  festival,  which 
from  the  fourth  century  spread  from  Rome  over  the  en- 
tire Church,  the  holy  commemoration  of  the  birth  of  th<! 
Redeemer  is  associated — to  this  day  even  in  Protestant 
lands — with  the  wanton  merriments  of  the  pagan  Satur- 
nalia. And  even  in  the  celebration  of  Sunday,  as  it  was 
introduced  by  Constantine,  and  still  continues  on  the 
whole  Continent  of  Europe,  the  cultus  of  the  old  sun-god 
Apollo  mingles  with  the  remembrance  of  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Christ,  and  the  widespread  profanation  of  the 
Lord's  day,  especially  on  the  Continent  of  Europe, 
demonstrates  the  great  influence  which  heathenism  still 
exerts  upon  Roman  and  Greek  Catholic,  and  even  upon 
Protestant,  Christendom. 

"Church  History,"  vol.  iii,  pp.  377,  378. 

Similar  testimony  is  borne  by  the  following  : 

The  first  Roman  converts  to  Christianity  appear  to 
have  had  very  inadequate  ideas  of  the  sublime  purity  of 
the  gospel,  and  to  have  entertained  a  strange  medley  of 
pagan  idolatry  and  Christian  truth.  The  emperor, 
Alexander  Severus,  who  had  imbibed  from  his  mother, 
Mammaea,  a  singular  regard  for  the  Christian  religion, 
is  said  to  have  placed  in  his  domestic  chapel  the  images 
of  Abraham,  of  Orpheus,  of  Apollonius,  and  of  Christ  as 
the  four  chief  sages  who  had  instructed  mankind  in  the 
methods  of  adoring  the  Supreme  Deity. 

"  History  of  Rome,"  by  Thomas  Dyer,  LL.  D.,  p. 
295,  New  York  and  London,  1877. 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  31 

These  facts  combine  to  show  that  Sunday  leg- 
islation was  purely  pagan  in  its  origin.  Corre- 
sponding facts  concerning  Christianity  in  the 
Roman  Empire  at  that  date  show  that  its  influence 
was  not  sufficient  to  produce  such  a  legislation. 

Apologists  for  Sunday  incorrectly  assume  that 
the  exception  in  favor  of  work  in  the  country  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  few  Christians  dwelt  in  the 
rural  districts.  The  words  of  the  law  give  the 
true  reason,  namely,  that  the  important  interests 
of  agriculture  might  not  suffer.  Similar  excep- 
tions were  made  with  reference  to  other  heathen 
festivals.  The  number  of  dies  iion  was  already  so 
great  that  justice  was  thwarted  thereby,  as  busi- 
ness would  have  been  without  this  exception. 

The  numbers  and  influence  of  the  Christians  at 
this  time  were  not  sufficient  to  secure  such  legisla- 
tion had  they  desired  it.  Gibbon  testifies  on  this 
point  as  follows : 

According  to  the  irreproachable  testimony  of  Orlgen, 
the  proportion  of  the  faithful  was  very  inconsiderable, 
when  compared  with  the  multitude  of  an  unbelieving 
world  ;  but,  as  we  are  left  without  any  distinct  informa- 
tion, it  is  impossible  to  determine,  and  it  is  difficult  even 
to  conjecture,  the  real  numbers  of  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians. The  most  favorable  calculation,  however,  that 
can  be  deduced  from  the  examples  of  Antioch  and  of 
Rome  will  not  permit  us  to  imagine  that  more  than  a 
twentieth  part  of  the  subjects  of  the  empire  had  enlisted 
themselves  under  the  banner  of  the  cross  before  the  im- 
portant conversion  of  Constantine. 

"  Gibbon,"  vol.  i,  p.  583,  Harper  and  Brothers,  1883. 


32  Sunday  Legislation. 

This  twentieth  part  of  the  people  represented 
the  least  influential  portion  of  the  state,  socially 
and  politically,  and  the  law  could  not  have  been 
made  out  of  deference  to  them,  and  against  the 
genius  of  the  pagan  cultus.  More  than  this,  the 
law  was  not  desired  or  asked  for  by  Christians. 
Constantine  called  no  council  to  seek  advice, 
neither  did  he  act  in  response  to  any  appeal  from 
Christians.  As  pontifex  maximus  of  all  religions 
which  were  recognized  by  the  state,  he  had  abso- 
lute power  in  all  such  matters.  In  this  law  he  onl}^ 
sought  to  give  additional  honor  to  the  ''  venerable 
day  "  of  his  patron  deity,  the  sun-god,  Apollo. 
All  this  the  most  ardent  friends  of  Sunday  are 
compelled  to  admit.     Schaff  saj^s  : 

But  the  Sunday  law  of  Constantine  must  not  be  over- 
rated. He  enjoined  the  observance,  or  rather  forbade 
the  public  desecration  of  Sunday,  not  under  the  name 
of  Sahbatum  or  Dies  Domini^  but  under  its  old  astro- 
logical and  heathen  title.  Dies  Solis,  familiar  to  all 
his  subjects,  so  that  the  law  was  as  applicable  to  the 
worshipers  of  Hercules,  Apollo,  and  Mithras,  as  to  the 
Christians.  There  is  no  reference  whatever  in  his  law 
either  to  the  Fourth  Commandment  or  to  the  Resurrec- 
tion of  Christ. 

*'  Church  History,"  vol.  iii,  p.  380. 

Milman  says : 

The  rescript,  indeed,  for  the  religious  observance  of 
the  Sunday,  which  enjoined  suspension  of  all  public  busi- 
ness and  private  labor,  except  that  of  agriculture,  was 
enacted,  according  to  the  apparent  terms  of  the  decree, 


Under  the  Roman  Empire.  '7^'}^. 

for  the  whole  Roman  Empire.  Yet,  unless  we  had  direct 
proof  that  the  decree  set  forth  the  Christian  reason  for 
the  sanctity  of  the  day,  it  may  be  doubted  whether  the 
act  would  not  be  received  by  the  greater  part  of  the  em- 
pire, as  merely  adding  one  more  festival  to  the  fasti  of 
the  empire,  as  proceeding  entirely  from  the  will  of  the 
emperor,  or  even  grounded  on  his  authority  as  supreme 
pontiff,  by  which  he  had  the  plenary  power  of  appoint- 
ing holy  days.  In  fact,  as  we  have  before  observed,  the 
day  of  the  sun  would  be  willingly  hallowed  by  almost  all 
the  pagan  world,  especially  that  part  which  had  admitted 
any  tendency  toward  the  Oriental  theology. 

"History  of  Christianity,"  book  iii,  ch.  iv. 

Thus,  it  is  clear  that  antecedent  influences  and 
legislation,  the  nature  and  spirit  of  the  first  Sun- 
day law,  the  character  of  the  emperor,  who  acted 
in  his  pagan,  official,  capacity  as  poniifcx  maximus 
in  issuing  the  edict,  the  state  of  the  empire,  and 
the  corrupt  character  of  the  Church  at  that  period, 
all  declare  the  pagan  origin  of  Sunday  legislation. 
Another  important  fact  is  either  ignored  or  care- 
fully concealed  by  most  writers — namely,  that  the 
term  '*  Lord's  day  "  does  not  appear  in  any  civil 
legislation  concerning  Sunday,  until  the  year  386, 
more  than  two  generations  after  the  date  of  the 
first  law.  Worse  than  this,  many  writers,  whose 
high  character  should  have  prevented  them  from 
so  doing,  have  spoken  of  Constantine's  legislation 
as  concerning  "  the  Lord's  day  "  or  "  Christian 
Sabbath."  Such  use  of  terms  is  not  only  un- 
authorized by  the  facts,  but  is  historically  dishon- 


34  Siuiday  Legislation, 

est.  For  the  latter  term,  "  Christian  Sabbath,"  has 
no  place  in  history,  either  civil  or  ecclesiastical, 
until  the  time  of  the  Reformation.  It  would  be 
as  unjust  to  designate  Paul,  the  converted  apostle, 
by  the  name  of  Saul,  the  persecutor,  as  to  apply 
the  term*'  Christian  Sabbath,"  as  now  used, to  the 
conception  expressed  by  ''  venerable  day  of  the 
sun  "  in  Constantine's  legislation. 

The  legislation  which  followed  that  of  Con- 
stantine  shows  that  the  idea  of  exalting  and 
protecting  Sunday  as  a  Christian  institution,  and 
especially  as  a  sacred  day,  was  not  the  prominent 
idea.  On  the  contrary,  this  legislation  shows  that 
the  pagan  conception  of  a  state  church,  which 
should  control  all  religious  matters,  especially  all 
days,  whether  fasts  or  festivals,  was  the  central 
idea.  As  already  noticed,  the  laws  given  above 
were  issued  March  7th  and  8th,  A.  D.  321.  The 
Sunday  law  was  found  to  be  too  strict,  and,  in 
July  of  the  same  year,  Constantine  relaxed  it  by 
the  following  edict :  * 

The  august  Emperor  Constantine  to  Elpidius : 
As  it  seemed  unworthy  of  the  day  of  the  sun,  honored 
for  its  own  sacredness,  to  be  used  in  litigations  and  bane- 
ful disputes  of  parties,  so  it  is  grateful  and  pleasant  on 
that  day  for  sacred  vows  to  be  fulfilled.  And,  there- 
fore, let  all  have  the  liberty  on  the  festive  day  of  eman- 


*  In  some  instances  the  numbering  of  the  laws  from  the  Theodo- 
sian  Code  varies  from  the  order  as  found  in  Corpus  Juris  Komani 
Ante  Justiniani,  but  the  text  is  the  same. 


Under  the  Rommi  Empire,  35 

cipating  and   manumitting   slaves,    and    besides    these 
things  let  not  public  acts  be  forbidden. 

Published  the  5th,  before  the  nones  of  July,  at  Cara- 
lis,  in  the  consulship  of  Crispus  II  and  Constantine  II 

(321). 

"Codex  Theo.,"  lib .  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  i. 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  law  introduced  no 
Christian  idea,  and  predicates  the  sacredness  of 
the  day  upon  the  fact  that  it  is  the  day  of  the  sun. 

Nothing  appears  in  the  line  of  Sunday  legisla- 
tion after  this  edict  of  July,  321,  iov  sixty-five  years. 
In  386  A.  D.,  under  the  joint  rule  of  Gratianus, 
Valentinianus,  and  Theodosius,  legislation  is  taken 
up  in  which  there  is  slight  commingling  of  the 
''Lord's  day"  element  with  the  pagan  element. 
The  evils  rising  from  the  degrading  public  shows 
seem  to  have  interfered  with  the  administration 
of  justice,  and  to  have  corrupted  the  character  of 
the  civil  judges.  Hence,  the  first  law  in  the  year 
386  A.  D.  is  as  follows : 

The  three  august  emperors,  Gratianus,  Valentinianus, 
and  Theodosius,  to  Rufinus,  pretorian  prefect  : 

I.  Let  no  one  of  the  judges  be  free  to  attend  either 
theatrical  representations,  or  the  contests  of  the  circus, 
or  the  courses  of  the  wild  beasts,  except  on  those  days 
only  on  which  we  were  born,  or  obtained  the  scepter  of 
the  government,  and  on  those  days  let  them  observe  the 
festival  only  before  noon,  but  after  dinner  let  them  re- 
frain from  returning  to  the  show. 

Yet  all,  whether  judges  or  private  persons,  shall  un- 
derstand that  in  the  show  no  reward  in  gold  shall  at  all 


36  Sunday  Legislation, 

be  given,  this  being  lawful  only  to  the  consuls  to  whom 
we  have  granted  the  management  of  expending  public 
funds. 

II.  We  also  give  this  admonition,  that  no  one  shall 
offend  against  the  law  just  promulgated,  nor  exhibit  any 
show  to  the  people  on  the  day  of  the  sun,  nor  commingle 
divine  worship  with  the  completed  festival  (blood  of  slain 
beasts). 

Dated  the  thirteenth  before  the  calends  of  June,  at 
Heraclea,  in  the  consulship  of  most  noble,  pious  Hono- 
rius,  and  most  distinguished  Euodius  (386). 

'^  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  xv,  tit.  v,  lex  2. 

Later  in  the  same  year,  a-nd  by  the  same  em- 
perors, we  have  the  following  legislation,  in  which 
the  term  "  Lord's  day  "  appears  for  the  first  time 
in  the  civil  legislation  of  the  empire,  combined  in 
such  a  way^  with  the  sun's  da}^,  as  to  include  both 
the  pagan  conception  and  the  resurrection-festival 
idea,  which  had  become  engrafted  upon  the  pagan- 
ized Christianity  of  the  time.  The  law  is  as  fol- 
lows : 

On  the  day  of  the  sun,  properly  called  the  Lord's 
day  by  our  ancestors,  let  there  be  a  cessation  of  law- 
suits, business,  and  indictments  ;  let  no  one  exact  a  debt 
due  either  the  state  or  an  individual ;  let  there  be  no 
cognizance  of  disputes,  not  even  by  arbitrators,  whether 
appointed  by  the  courts  or  voluntarily  chosen.  And  let 
him  not  only  be  adjudged  notorious,  but  also  impious 
who  shall  turn  aside  from  an  institute  and  rite  of  holy 
religion. 

Published  the  third  before  the  nones  of  November, 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  37 

at  Aquilia ;  approved  at  Rome  the  eighth  before  the 
calends  of  December,  in  the  consulship  of  most  noble, 
pious  Honorius,  and  most  illustrious  Euodius  {;^'^()). 

"Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  viii,  tit.  viii,  lex  3. 

Three  years  later  this  legislation  was  enlarged, 
grouping  an  increased  number  of  pagan  festivals, 
including  the  birthdays  of  the  emperors,  and  the 
days  on  which  they  assumed  the  imperial  office. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  the  emperors  were 
worshiped  as  gods,  and  until  a  period  long  after 
this  they  were  deified  after  death.  The  following 
is  the  text  of  the  law: 

The  three  august  emperors,  Valentinianus,  Theodo- 
sius,  and  Arcadius,  to  Albinus,  prefect  of  the  city  : 

We  command  that  all  days  shall  be  days  for  the  ad- 
ministration of  justice.  It  is  proper  that  those  days  only 
shall  be  holidays  which  in  the  twin  months  the  more  in- 
dulgent portion  of  the  year  has  designated  for  rest,  for 
mitigating  the  heat  of  summer,  and  gathering  the  fruits 
of  autumn. 

1.  We  likewise  set  apart,  for  rest,  the  usual  days  of 
the  calends  of  January. 

2.  We  designate  (also)  the  natal  days  of  the  greatest 
cities,  Rome  and  Constantinople,  on  which  justice  ought 
to  be  deferred,  because  from  these  it  also  had  its  origin. 

3.  Likewise  we  regard  with  the  same  reverence  the 
sacred  days  of  Pascha,  the  seven  which  precede,  and  the 
seven  which  follow ;  and  likewise  the  days  of  the  sun  as 
they  follow  each  other  in  order. 

4.  It  is  necessary  to  hold  in  equal  reverence  our  own 
days,  either  those  which  brought  us  forth  (to  behold) 


38  Simday  Legislatio7i. 

auspicious  light — that  is,  their  birthdays — or  gave  birth 
to  the  empire. 

Dated  at  Rome  the  seventh  before  the  ides  of  August, 
in  the  consulship  of  Timasius  and  Promotus  (389). 

''Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  19. 

There  was  evidently  great  disregard  for  these 
enactments,  for  three  years  later  the  following 
orders  Avere  issued  to  the  city  government  at 
Constantinople : 

The  three  august  emperors,  Valentinianus,  Theodo- 
sius,  and  Arcadius,  to  Proculus,  prefect  of  the  city  : 

The  games  of  the  circus  should  be  prevented  on  the 
festive  days  of  the  sun,  in  order  that  no  gathering  for 
shows  may  turn  away  the  attendance  from  the  venerable 
mysteries  of  the  Christian  religion,  except  on  the  natal 
days  of  our  grace. 

Dated  the  fifteenth  before  the  calends  of  May,  at 
Constantinople,  in  the  consulship  of  the  august  Arca- 
dius and  Rufinus  (392). 

A  few  days  later,  on  the  sixth  day  before  the 
calends  of  June,  these  same  emperors  decreed  as 
follows : 

All  business,  whether  public  or  private,  shall  be  laid 
aside  for  the  fifteen  days  of  Easter  (392). 

"  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  20  et  lex  21. 

The  following  bit  of  legislation  indicates  how 
thoroughly  public  shows  were  associated  with 
public  festivals.  The  reader  will  see  that  it  is  an 
order  for  certain  theatrical  shows  to  be  exhibited 
on  Christmas.     The  law  is  as  follows : 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  39 

The  Emperors  Arcadius  and  Honorius,  A.  A.,  to  the 
prefect  of  the  city  : 

Our  imperial  edict  was  lately  published  that  the  ex- 
penditure to  be  made  for  the  theatre  should  be  turned 
to  the  construction  of  an  aqueduct;  but  now  do  you 
cause  it  to  be  properly  granted  so  that  the  pretors, 
Romanus  and  Laureatus,  may  exhibit  the  theatrical 
shows  on  the  birthday  of  our  Lord. 

Dated  the  fourth  before  the  calends  of  January,  at 
Constantinople,  Arcadius  IV,  and  Honorius  III,  being 
consuls  (396). 

"  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  vi,  tit.  iv,  lex  29. 

Many  of  these  public  shows,  under  the  degrad- 
ing influences  connected  with  them — which  degra- 
dation was  of  a  semi-religious  origin — had  become 
so  corrupting  that  they  were  forbidden  upon  all 
days.  These  were  more  dangerous  when  permit- 
ted on  Sunday,  because  of  the  additional  tempta- 
tion granted  by  the  leisure  attending  that  day. 
Hence,  in  the  year  399,  we  find  a  special  law  for- 
bidding the  debasing  shows  of  the  circus  on  Sun- 
day, but  at  the  same  time  repealing  the  act  which 
forbade  the  emperor's  birthdays  to  be  celebrated 
on  Sunday.     The  law  is  as  follows : 

The  two  august  emperors,  Arcadius  and  Honorius, 
to  Aurelianus,  pretorian  prefect : 

On  the  Lord's  day,  which  derives  its  name  from  the 
respect  due  it,  let  there  be  no  celebration  of  theatrical 
sports,  nor  races  of  horses,  nor  any  shows  in  any  city, 
which  are  found  to  enervate  the  mind.     But  the  natal 


40  Sunday  Legislation, 

days  of  the  emperors,  even  if  they  fall  on  the  Lord's 
day,  may  be  celebrated. 

Dated  the  first  of  September,  at  Constantinople,  in 
the  consulship  of  most  illustrious  Theodosius  (399). 

"  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  27,. 

In  the  following'  year  these  prohibitions  are 
extended  to  the  days  of  Lent,  of  Easter,  Christ- 
mas, and  the  Epiphany,  thus  carrying  out  the  idea 
which  prevails  in  all  the  legislation  that  Sunday 
held  no  prominence  over  these  other  days.  The 
additional  law  is  as  follows : 

.    The  two  august  emperors,  Arcadius  and  Honorius, 
to  Hadrian,  pretorian  prefect : 

Out  of  regard  for  religion,  we  warn  and  decree  that 
during  the  seven  days  of  Lent,  the  seven  days  of  Easter, 
by  the  hallowing  of  which  and  by  fasting,  sins  are  re- 
mitted, and  likewise  on  the  day  of  his  (Christ's)  birth, 
and  on  the  Epiphany,  let  no  shows  be  exhibited. 

Dated  the  day  before  the  nones  of  February,  at 
Ravenna,  in  the  consulship  of  Stilicho  and  Aurelian 
(400). 

"Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  24. 


Laws  Concerning  the  Sabbath. 

An  important  fact  relative  to  the  legislation 
concerning  the  Sabbath  must  be  here  noted.  As 
early  as  the  year  214  a  law  had  been  passed  pro- 
tecting the  Jews  in  the  observance  of  their  feast 
days  and  the  Sabbath.     It  is  as  follows : 


Under  the  Romafi  Empire,  41 

The  Emperor  Antonius  to  Claudius  Triphonius  : 
On  their  feast  days,  or  Sabbaths,  the  Jews  do  not 
undergo  any  bodily  service  nor  perform  anything  what- 
ever ;  neither  are  they  to  be  summoned  into  court  on 
account  of  any  public  or  private  suit ;  neither  may  they 
summon  Christians  into  court. 

Dated  the  day  before  the  calends  of  July,  Antonius 
and  Balbinus  being  consuls  (214). 

"Codex  Just.,"  lib.  i,  tit.  ix,  lex  11. 

In  the  year  409  two  other  laws,  addressed  to 
different  officers,  appeared  recognizing  the  rights 
of  the  Jews,  and  also  indicating  that  Christians 
still  observed  the  Sabbath,  and  were  not  to  be  dis- 
turbed by  legal  business.  The  fact  of  this  legis- 
lation, stretching  over  a  period  of  nearly  two 
hundred  years,  is  important,  as  showing  the  con- 
tinuation of  Sabbath-keeping.  These  laws  are  as 
follows  : 

The  two  august  emperors,  Honorius  and  Theodosius, 
to  John,  pretorian  prefect : 

On  the  Sabbath  day  and  other  days,  during  which 
the  Jews  pay  respect  to  their  own  mode  of  worship,  we 
enjoin  that  no  one  shall  do  anything,  or  ought  to  be 
sued  in  any  way  ;  with  regard  to  public  taxes  and  pri- 
vate litigations,  it  is  plain  that  the  rest  of  the  days  can 
suffice. 

Dated  the  seventh  before  the  calends  of  August,  at 
Ravenna,  our  lords  Honorius  VIII  and  Theodosius  III, 
both  august,  being  consuls  (409). 

The  Emperors  Honorius  and  Theodosius,  A.  A.,  to 
Jovius,  pretorian  prefect  : 


42  Sunday  Legislation, 

In  respect  to  the  Sabbath  and  other  days  when  the 
Jews  pay  respect  to  their  reHgion,  we  enjoin  that  no  one 
shall  do  anything,  and  that  no  one  ought  in  any  respect 
to  be  pleaded  against  judicially ;  yet,  so  that  no  license 
be  given  to  prosecute  orthodox  Christians  on  the  same 
day,  lest,  perchance,  by  the  prosecution  of  the  Jews  on 
the  aforesaid  day.  Christians  shall  be  molested  with  fiscal 
affairs ;  and  as  for  private  litigation,  let  the  remaining 
days  suffice. 

Given  the  eighth  before  the  calends  of  August,  at 
Ravenna  (409). 

"  Codex  Just.,"  book  i,  tit.  ix,  lex  13. 

This  legislation  concerning  the  Sabbath  is, 
like  that  concerning  Sunday,  in  keeping  with  the 
genius  of  the  Roman  legislation,  which  aimed  to 
grant  certain  rights  to  all  legal  religions.  As  al- 
ready suggested,  these  laws  show  that  the  Sab- 
bath was  observed,  and  legally  protected  as  late 
as  409  A.  D. 

Laws  Concerning  Prisoners. 

This  year  409  was  prolific  in  religious  and  hu- 
manitarian legislation.  Many  abuses  seem  to 
have  been  connected  with  the  prisons  in  the  Ro- 
man Empire,  and  there  was  great  want  of  care 
for  the  physical  welfare  of  the  prisoners.  Hence, 
we  find  the  following  law,  the  reason  for  which 
seems  to  have  been  that  Sunday,  as  a  day  of  leis- 
ure and  of  semi-religious  regard,  was  devoted  to 
such  humanitarian  work.     The  law  is  as  follows: 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  43 

The  two  august  emperors,  Honorius  and  Theo- 
dosius,  to  Csecilianus,  pretorian  prefect,  after  other 
things : 

Let  the  judges  take  care  and  ascertain  by  inquiry 
that  the  debtors  are  brought  out  of  prison  on  all  of  the 
Lord's  days,  lest  humane  treatment  be  denied  these 
through  the  bribery  of  the  guards  of  the  prison.  Let 
them  cause  food  to  be  supplied  to  those  not  having  it, 
two  or  three  pence  daily,  or  as  many  as  they  may  deem 
sufficient,  having  been  assigned  to  the  keeper  of  the 
prison,  since  the  provisions  for  the  poor  are  enough  for 
their  support.  These  ought  to  be  conducted  to  the 
bath  under  faithful  guards  ;  a  fine  of  twenty  pounds  of 
gold  being  imposed  upon  the  judges,  and  the  same 
amount  upon  their  assistants,  and  also  a  fine  of  three 
pounds  of  gold  being  denounced  against  the  command- 
ers, if  they  shall  treat  with  contempt  these  most  salutary 
enactments.  A  praiseworthy  care  shall  not  be  want- 
ing to  the  bishops  of  the  Christian  religion  to  impress 
this  admonition  for  observing  the  ordinance  upon  the 
judges. 

Dated  the  12th  day  before  the  calends  of  February, 
at  Ravanna,  in  the  consulship  of  Honorius  VIII  and 
Theodosius  III  (409). 

''  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  vi,  tit.  iv,  lex  29. 

Still  further  humanitarian  legislation  occurs  in 
this  same  year  by  vv^hich  Sunday,  the  pagan  feast 
of  the  harvest,  the  autumn  feast  of  the  vintage, 
the  holy  days  of  Easter,  the  day  of  Christ's 
birth,  and  of  the  Epiphany  are  all  associated  and 
protected.  There  is  also  an  additional  law  con- 
cerning the  shows  on  Sunday,  and  the  celebration 


44  Sunday  Legislation^ 

of  the  birthdays  of  the  empire.     The  following  is 
the  text  of  the  two  laws  referred  to : 

The  august  emperors,  Honorius  and  Theodosius,  to 
Jovius,  pretorian  prefect,  after  other  things  : 

On  the  Lord's  day,  commonly  called  the  day  of  the 
sun,  we  do  not  at  all  allow  the  exhibition  of  any  shows, 
although  perchance  the  dawn  of  our  empire  appeared  on 
that  day  in  the  yearly  cycle,  or  the  festivities  due  to  our 
birthday  are  deferred. 

Dated  the  ist  of  April  at  Ravenna,  in  the  consulship 
of  the  august  Honorius  VIII  and  the  august  Theodosius 
III  {409). 

•  "  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  ii,  tit.  viii,  lex  25. 

On  the  Lord's  day  it  shall  be  lawful  to  emancipate 
and  to  manumit,  let  other  causes  or  litigations  rest,  and 
also  during  the  feast  of  the  harvest,  from  the  eighth  day 
of  the  calends  of  July  to  the  calends  of  August ;  from 
the  calends  of  August  to  the  tenth  calends  of  September, 
causes  may  be  tried;  but  from  the  tenth  calends  of 
September  to  the  ides  of  October  let  there  be  the  feast 
of  the  vintage ;  also  the  holy  day  of  Easter,  the  day  of 
our  Lord's  nativity,  the  day  of  the  Epiphany,  the  seven 
days  preceding  and  the  seven  days  following,  we  wish  to 
be  observed  without  noise,  and  whatever  has  been  en- 
acted contrary  to  this  is  in  all  respects  made  void. 

*'  Codex  Justin,"  lib.  iii,  tit.  xii,  lex  2. 

In  425  A.  D.  we  find  distinct  evidences  that  the 
worship  of  the  emperor,  a  purely  pagan  practice, 
still  continued  in  a  slightly  modified  form.  There 
seems  to  have  been  a  recognition  by  the  em- 
perors making  this  law,  that  the  honors  due  them 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  45 

were  not  quite  equal  to  the  honors  due  Jehovah. 
Hence  the  following : 

The  emperors,  Theodosius  and  Valentinianus,  to 
Aetius,  pretorian  prefect : 

If  ever  our  statues  or  likenesses  are  set  up,  whether 
on  holidays,  as  is  the  custom,  or  on  common  days,  let 
the  inscription  be  devoid  of  extreme  adulation  in  order 
that  the  decoration  may  appear  to  have  been  added  in 
honor  of  the  day  or  the  place  and  our  memory. 

I.  Likewise,  images  desired  at  the  games  merely  in  the 
thoughts  and  secret  plans  of  the  concourse  of  the  multi- 
tude, should  show  that  our  power  and  glory  are  in  a 
flourishing  condition  ;  going  beyond  the  respect  due  to 
the  dignity  of  man  should  be  reserved  for  the  power  on 
high. 

Dated  the  nones  of  May,  Theodosius,  A.  XI,  and 
Valenthiianus,  C.  Coss.  (425). 

"  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  xv,  tit.  iv,  lex  i. 

This  same  year  vv^itnessed  a  renewal  of  legisla- 
tion concerning  many  days,  which  shows  that  the 
pagan  theory  of  placing  all  days  and  festivals 
upon  the  same  basis  held  absolute  sway,  and  it  will 
be  seen  that  according  to  the  following  law,  Sun- 
day holds  no  pre-eminence  over  many  other  days  ; 

The  august  emperors,  Theodosius  and  Valentinianus, 
to  Asclepiodotus,  pretorian  prefect : 

On  the  Lord's  day,  which  is  the  first  day  of  the  whole 
week,  and  on  the  days  of  the  nativity  and  the  Epiphany 
of  Christ,  and  also  on  the  days  of  Pentecost  and  of 
Easter,  as  long  as  the  celestial  light  and  the  (white)  gar- 


46  Sunday  Legislation, 

ments  testify  of  the  new  light  of  sacred  baptism  (in  our 
souls) ;  at  which  time  also  the  memory  of  the  passion  of 
the  apostles,  the  supreme  teachers  of  Christianity,  is 
rightly  celebrated  by  all  ;  all  the  pleasure  of  the  theatres 
and  of  the  circus  throughout  all  cities,  being  denied  to 
the  people  of  the  same,  let  the  minds  of  all  faithful 
Christians  be  employed  in  the  worship  of  God.  If  any, 
even  now,  through  the  madness  of  Jewish  impiety  or  the 
error  and  folly  of  dull  paganism  are  kept  away,  let  them 
learn  that  there  is  one  time  for  prayer  and  another  for 
pleasure.  Let  no  one  think  himself  compelled,,  as  by  a 
great  necessity,  in  honor  of  our  power  or  imperial  office, 
lest  he  exalt  the  work  of  the  shows  to  the  contempt  of 
divine  religion  ;  neither  let  him  fear  that  he  will  come 
under  the  condemnation  of  our  highness,  if  he  shall 
show  less  of  devotion  to  us  than  is  customary ;  and  let 
no  one  wonder  because  reverence  is  then  turned  away 
from  our  excellency,  human  born,  to  God  the  omnipotent 
and  deserving,  to  whom  the  allegiance  of  the  whole  world 
ought  to  be  paid. 

Given  at  Constantinople,  February  ist  (425). 

''  Codex  Theo.,"  lib.  xv,  tit.  v,  lex  5. 

Legislation  concerning  Sunday  and  its  associ- 
ate festivals  rested  for  about  fifty  years  from  the 
date  of  the  foregoing  laws.  The  empire  was  al- 
ready swaying  toward  its  fall,  and  it  is  evident 
that  the  laws  already  made  concerning  festivals 
were  regarded  lightly  by  the  people.  In  the  year 
469  the  essence  of  the  preceding  laws  was  em- 
bodied in  the  following  enactment.  It  shows  no 
departure  from  the  genius  of  the  pagan  state,  and 


Under  the  Roman  E7npire,  47 

thus  proves  that  while  the  first  law  under  Con- 
stantine  was  purely  pagan,  both  in  form  and  spirit, 
the  last  laws  before  the  fall  of  the  empire  were 
not  essentially  more  Christian.  The  legislation  had 
been  enlarged,  commingling  old  pagan  festivals, 
baptized  with  new  names,  and  modified  somewhat 
in  observance  by  the  tide  of  Christian  life.  The 
following  is  the  text  of  this  enactment : 

The  august  emperors,  Leo  and  Anthemis,  to  Arma- 
sius,  pretorian  prefect : 

We  wish  the  festal  days  dedicated  to  the  Majesty- 
Most  High,  to  be  employed  in  no  voluptuous  pleasures, 
and  profaned  by  no  vexatious  exactions. 

I.  Therefore  we  decree  that  the  Lord's  day  shall 
always  be  so  held  in  honor  and  veneration,  that  it  shall 
be  free  fom  all  prosecutions,  that  no  chastisement  shall 
be  inflicted  upon  any  one,  that  no  bail  shall  be  exacted, 
that  public  service  shall  cease,  that  advocacy  shall 
be  laid  aside,  that  this  day  shall  be  free  from  judicial 
investigations,  that  the  shrill  voice  of  the  crier  shall 
cease,  that  litigants  shall  have  rest  from  their  dis- 
putes, and  have  time  for  compromise,  that  antagonists 
shall  come  together  without  fear,  that  a  vicarious  re- 
pentance may  pervade  their  minds,  that  they  may  confer 
concerning  settlements  and  talk  over  terms  of  agree- 
ment. But,  though  giving  ourselves  up  to  rest  on  this 
religious  day,  we  do  not  suffer  any  one  to  be  engaged  in 
impure  pleasures.  On  this  day  the  scenes  of  the  theatre 
should  make  no  claim  for  themselves,  neither  the  games 
of  the  circus  nor  the  tearful  shows  of  the  wild  beasts ; 
and  if  the  celebration  should  happen  to  fall  on  our  birth- 
day it  may  be  postponed. 


48  Sunday  Legislation, 

He  shall  suffer  the  loss  of  his  office  and  the  confisca- 
tion of  his  estate,  who  shall  attend  the  games  on  this 
festal  day,  or  shall,  as  a  public  servant,  under  pretense 
of  public  or  private  business,  cause  these  enactments  to 
be  treated  with  contempt. 

Dated,  December  13,  at  Constantinople,  Zeno  and 
Martianus  being  consuls  (469). 

"  Codex  Justin,"  lib.  iii,  tit.  xii,  lex  11. 

Not  one  of  the  days  included  in  the  foregoing 
legislation  can  claim  any  direct  authority  from  the 
New  Testament,  or  the  practices  of  the  Apostolic 
Church.  If  all  be  granted  which  candid  scholar- 
ship can  ask  concerning  Sunday,  there  is  only  a 
certain  presumptive  evidence  in  favor  of  any  ob- 
servance of  it  until  after  the  Church  passed  under 
the  control  of  pagan  influences.  But  the  point  to 
be  noted  is  that  civil  legislation  concerning  Sun- 
day and  its  associate  festivals  was  purely  pagan 
as  to  its  origin.  The  feasts  of  harvest,  the  vintage, 
and  of  January,  were  all  pagan  in  origin  and  char- 
acter, and  the  modification  which  took  place  after 
the  introduction  of  Christianity  was  such  as  drew 
the  Christians  to  the  heathen  practices,  rather 
than  such  as  raised  the  heathen  up  to  Christianity. 
Indeed,  New  Testament  Christianity  knew  no 
such  festivals  and  no  such  observance.  Its  tenor 
is  positively  opposed  to  such  legislation.  The 
Church  was  not  only  degraded  by  the  interference 
of  the  civil  law,  but  more  deeply  corrupted  by  the 
inweaving  of  pagan  philosophy  and  pagan  prac- 
tices.     These  influences,  and   the    complications 


Under  the  Roman  Empire,  49 

which  arose  through  civil  legislation  and  filled  the 
Church  with  self-seeking  and  unconverted  men, 
made  it  impossible  for  Christianity  to  retain  its 
primitive  purity.  This  chapter  leaves  the  legisla- 
tion at  the  dividing  line  between  the  falling  em- 
pire and  the  middle  ages. 


CHAPTER   III. 

SUNDAY    LEGISLATION    AFTER  THE    FALL  OF    THE 
ROMAN  EMPIRE. 

In  the  Roman  Sunday  laws  given  in  the  last 
chapter,  we  have  a  picture  of  the  united  Church 
and  State,  and  the  status  of  the  Sunday  and  other 
festivals  when  the  Roman  Empire  was  broken  in 
pieces  by  the  tide  of  barbarian  immigration.  It 
will  be  well  to  note  the  general  state  of  Chris- 
tianity before  taking  up  the  legislation  of  the  next 
period. 

Christianity  has  gained  a  political  victory,  and 
suffered  a  moral  and  spiritual  defeat.  It  has  im- 
parted much  of  good  to  heathenism,  but  it  has  suf- 
fered far  greater  loss  in  its  own  purity.  Worse 
than  all  else,  it  has  become  involved  in  a  false  poli- 
cy, the  ripened  fruitage  of  which  can  not  be  less 
than  the  horrors  of  the  "  dark  ages."  The  controll- 
ing ideas  in  the  Church  are  far  removed  from  the 
teachings  of  him  who  said,  *'  My  kingdom  is  not  of 
this  world."  Beginning  with  Constantine,  empe- 
rors unlearned  in  the  Scriptures  and  unguided  by 
the  spirit  of  truth,  were  accustomed  to  decide  what 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire.  51 

Christianity  was,  and  what  should  be  persecuted  as 
heresy.  Swayed  by  personal  ends  and  political  in- 
trigue, the  orthodoxy  of  to-day  was  the  heresy  of  to- 
morrow. Nothing  less  than  a  divine  Christianity 
could  have  survived  total  destruction.  The  evi- 
dences of  perversion  and  corruption  are  so  great 
that  no  lover  of  truth  can  close  his  eyes  against 
the  need  of  reform  which  yet  cries  against  the 
false  theories  that  remain  in  the  reforming  but 
not  wholly  reformed  Christianity  of  our  own 
time.  Under  the  policy  of  that  time,  whoever  ac- 
cepted the  legal  standard  was  a  Christian,  who- 
ever did  not  was  a  "  heretic " — religiously  a 
criminal.     Note  the  following  testimony  : 

The  martyrs  and  confessors  of  the  first  three  centuries 
in  their  expectation  of  the  impending  end  of  the  world 
and  their  desire  for  the  speedy  return  of  the  Lord,  had 
never  once  thought  of  such  a  thing  as  the  great  and  sud- 
den change  which  meets  us  at  the  beginning  of  this 
period  in  the  relation  of  the  Roman  state  to  the  Christian 
Church.  Tertullian  had  even  held  the  Christian  profes- 
sion to  be  irreconcilable  with  the  office  of  a  Roman 
Emperor.  Nevertheless,  clergy  and  people  very  soon  and 
very  easily  accommodated  themselves  to  the  new  order 
of  things,  and  recognized  in  it  a  reproduction  of  the 
theocratic  constitution  of  the  people  of  God  under  the 
ancient  covenant.  Save  that  the  dissenting  sects  who 
derived  no  benefit  from  this  union,  but  were  rather  sub- 
ject to  persecution  from  the  state  and  from  the  estab- 
lished Catholicism,  the  Donatists,  for  an  especial  instance, 
protested    against    the  intermeddling  of   the  temporal 


52  Simday  Legislatzo?z, 

power  with  the  religious  concerns.  The  heathen,  who 
now  came  over  in  a  mass,  had  all  along  been  accustomed 
to  a  union  of  politics  with  religion,  of  the  imperial  with 
the  sacerdotal  dignity,  They  could  not  imagine  a  state 
without  some  cultus,  whatever  might  be  its  name.  And 
as  heathenism  had  outlived  itself  in  the  empire,  and 
Judaism,  with  its  national  exclusiveness  and  its  station- 
ary character,  was  totally  disqualified,  Christianity  must 

take  the  throne 

But  the  elevation  of  Christianity  as  the  religion  of  the 
state  presents  also  an  opposite  aspect  to  our  contempla- 
tion. It  involved  great  risk  of  degeneracy  to  the  Church. 
The  Roman  state,  with  its  laws,  institutions,  and  usages, 
was  still  deeply  rooted  in  heathenism,  and  could  not  be 
transformed  by  a  magical  stroke.  The  Christianizing  of 
the  state  amounted,  therefore,  in  great  measure  to  a 
paganizing  and  secularizing  of  the  Church.  The  world 
overcame  the  Church  as  much  as  the  Church  overcame 
the  world,  and  the  temporal  gain  of  Christianity  was,  in 
many  respects,  canceled  by  spiritual  loss.  The  mass  of 
the  Roman  Empire  was  baptized  only  with  water,  not 
with  the  spirit  and  fire  of  the  gospel,  and  it  smuggled 
heathen  manners  and  practices  into  the  sanctuary  under 
a  new  name.  The  very  combination  of  the  cross,  with 
the  military  ensign  by  Constantine,  was  a  most  doubtful 
omen,  portending  an  unhappy  mixture  of  the  temporal 
and  spiritual  powers,  the  kingdom  which  is  of  the  earth 
and  that  which  is  from  heaven.  The  settlement  of  the 
boundary  between  the  two  powers  which,  with  all  their 
unity,  remain  as  essentially  distinct  as  body  and  soul, 
law  and  gospel,  was  itself  a  prolific  source  of  error  and 
vehement  strifes  about  jurisdiction,  which  stretched 
through  all  the  middle  age,  and  still  repeat  themselves 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  53 

in  these  latest  times,  save  where  the  amicable  American 
separation  has  thus  far  forestalled  collision. 

Philip  Schaff,  "Church  History,"  vol.  iii,  pp.  91 
and  93. 

It  is  difficult  for  those  who  are  not  familiar 
with  the  relations  Vv^hich  existed  between  Chris- 
tianity and  the  civil  government  of  the  Roman 
Empire  to  understand  how  entirely  they  were  in- 
woven one  with  the  other,  and  how  each  modified 
the  other.  Protestants  have  been  so  busy  in  de- 
fending- the  position  assumed  by  the  reformers  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  that  the  majority  of  them 
have  not  looked  carefully  into  the  influences 
which  produced  the  evils  that  compelled  the  work 
of  reformation.  Under  Constantine,  Christianit}^ 
was  taken  in  charge  as  a  recognized  religion  to  be 
protected  and  fostered  by  the  empire.  It  was 
not  made  the  official  religion  of  the  empire  until 
nearly  the  close  of  the  fourth  century — 380  A.  D. — 
under  Theodosius.  Meanwhile,  the  civil  law  had 
assumed  absolute  control  over  all  the  depart- 
ments of  the  Christian  Church.  The  emperor,  as 
ponfifex  maximiis,  not  only  retained  his  position 
as  having  plenary  power  to  appoint  festivals,  cere- 
monies, etc.,  but  at  and  after  the  Council  of  Nice, 
325  A.  D.,  the  civil  law  determined  what  should  be 
recognized  as  Christianity.  Before  the  close  of 
the  fourth  century  seventeen  edicts  had  been  is- 
sued against  heretics  and  against  pagans  in  Asia 
Minor  alone.  Following  this  policy,  the  empire 
made  every  effort,  using  both  bribery  and  fear 


54  Sunday  Legislation. 

from  time  to  time  to  induce  men  to  profess  alle- 
giance to  Christianity. 

Touching  this  point,  C.  J.  Stille,  writing  in  the 
**  Schaff-Herzog  Encyclopaedia,"  vol.  iii,  p.  2070^ 
says: 

No  one  can  read  the  account  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  Council  of  Nicaea  (325),  which  formulated  the 
creed  which  from  that  period  to  this  has  been  regarded 
as  the  basis  of  the  faith  of  the  universal  Church,  without 
being  convinced  that  the  emperor  was  regarded  as 
something  more  than  the  honorary  president  of  that 
body,  that  he  considered  himself  at  least  as  pontifex 
maximiis  in  the  new  religion,  as  his  predecessors  had 
been  in  the  old  ;  and  thus  at  the  very  outset  was  forced 
upon  the  infant  Church  that  unholy  alliance  with  the 
state  which,  among  other  things,  has  helped  to  make 
Christianity  so  conspicuous  an  element  in  all  subsequent 
history.  The  modern  conception  of  the  union  of  Church 
and  State  had  its  origin  under  Constantine.  His  succes- 
sors, Theodosius  and  Gratian,  define  or  ratify  the  defi- 
nition of  doctrines  and  condemn  heretics.  Justinian 
evidently  thought  himself  pope  and  emperor  combined  ; 
and  Charlemagne,  in  his  "  Capitularies,"  is  at  once  the 
legislator  of  the  Church  and  of  the  State. 

The  Christian  Church  received  from  Constantine  an- 
other distinguishing  mark,  which  it  retained  for  nearly 
fifteen  hundred  years — namely,  the  principle  and  the 
practice  of  punishing  heretics  by  civil  penalties.  It  is 
an  humiliating  confession  to  make  that  heresy — which  is 
defined  to  be  a  persistent  advocacy  of  opinions  which 
have  been  condemned  by  the  Church — is  an  offense 
which  has  never  been  punished  as  a  crime  by  the  civil 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire.  55 

magistrate  under  any  ecclesiastical  system  save  the 
Christian.  But  Constantine  provided  by  an  edict  that 
the  Donatist  heretics  should  be  so  punished  in  316,  and 
his  example  was  followed  by  Theodosius  and  others,  so 
that  before  the  close  of  the  fourth  century  no  less  than 
seventeen  edicts  had  been  promulgated  directing  the 
magistrates  to  punish  Christian  dissenters.  By  these 
edicts  they  were  deprived  of  their  property  and  made 
incapable  of  holding  office,  and  they  were  liable  to  be 
scourged  and  banished.  The  first  blood  judicially  shed 
for  religious  opinion  is  said  to  have  been  that  of  certain 
Manichaeans  in  385  ;  but  it  is  alleged  that  their  condem- 
nation was  extorted  from  an  usurping  emperor,  and  that 
the  infliction  of  death  as  a  punishment  was  highly  dis- 
approved by  such  saints  as  Martin  of  Tours  and  Ambrose 
of  Milan. 

During  the  fourth  century  the  pretensions  of  the 
Christian  hierarchy  to  power  were  greatly  increased, 
and  the  primitive  simplicity  of  the  conduct  of  Christians 
no  longer  existed.  The  Church  had  vast  possessions  ;  its 
clergy  formed  the  larger  portion  of  the  educated  classes, 
and  held  conspicuous  positions  at  the  imperial  court. 
Christian  beneficence  was  not  only  recognized  as  a  duty, 
but  it  became  the  fashion,  or  rather  a  passion,  among 
people  of  rank  and  wealth,  to  lavish  gifts  on  the  Church  ; 
the  magistrates  in  the  town  worked  generally  harmoni- 
ously with  the  bishop  in  the  administration,  the  bishop, 
indeed,  becoming  the  most  conspicuous  officer  in  the 
7?iimicipia.  In  short,  society  during  the  fourth  century, 
both  in  the  East  and  the  West,  became  Christianized, 
A  revolution  had  begun,  which  not  only  destroyed  the 
outward  forms  of  paganism,  but  which  gradually  worked 
out  its  spirit  from  the  minds  of  the  people.     Nowhere 


56  Sunday  Legislatio7i, 

can  we  find  a  better  Illustration  of  the  recognized  power 
of  the  clergy  than  where  Ambrose,  Archbishop  of  Milan, 
has  the  courage  to  forbid  the  Emperor  Theodosius 
(a.  d.  390)  even  to  enter  the  church,  much  less  to  re- 
ceive therein  the  sacraments,  until  he  had  undergone 
penance  for  the  crime  of  the  massacre  at  Thessalonica, 
of  which  he  had  been  guilty. 

The  policy  thus  inaugurated  at  the  opening 
of  the  fourth  century  was  steadily  pursued  until 
under  Justinian,  who  reigned  from  527  to  565 
A.  D.,  it  culminated  in  such  a  combination  that  the 
unholy  alliance,  after  the  model  of  the  pagan  cul- 
tus,  thoroughly  prepared  the  way  for  the  coming 
of  the  dark  ages.  The  empire  had  been  divided 
into  Eastern  and  Western,  over  questions  of  doc- 
trine, which  division  Justinian  healed,  or  rather 
covered,  by  imperial  authority.  He  then  sought 
to  become  the  world's  legislator  by  codifying  all 
Roman  laws  which  had  been  enacted  during  the 
preceding  thousand  years.  Concerning  this  codi- 
fication and  its  effect  upon  the  Church,  Milman 
says: 

In  th3  following  chapters  (of  the  Justinian  Code) 
the  appointment,  the  organization,  the  subordination, 
the  authority  of  the  ecclesiastical,  as  of  the  civil  magis- 
trates of  the  realm,  is  assumed  to  emanate  from,  to  be 
granted,  limited,  prescribed  by  the  supreme  emperor. 
Excommunication  is  uttered  indeed  by  the  ecclesiastics, 
but  according  to  the  imperial  laws  and  with  the  imperial 
warrant.  He  deigns,  indeed,  to  allow  the  canons  of  the 
Church  to  be  of  not  less  equal  authority  than  his  laws ; 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  57 

but  his  laws  are  divine,  and  these  divine  laws  all  metro- 
politans, bishops,  and  clergy  are  bound  to  obey,  and,  if 
commanded,  to  publish.  The  hierarchy  is  regulated  by 
his  ordinance.  He  enacts  the  superiority  of  the  metro- 
politan over  the  bishop,  of  the  bishop  over  the  abbot,  of 
the  abbot  over  the  monk.  Distinct  imperial  laws  rule  the 
monasteries.  The  law  prescribes  the  ordination  of  bish- 
ops, the  persons  qualified  for  ordination,  the  whole  form 
and  process  of  that  holy  ceremony.  The  law  admitted 
no  immunities  in  the  clergy  for  crimes  committed  against 
the  state  and  against  society.  It  took  upon  itself  the 
severe  superintendence  of  clerical  morals.  The  pas- 
sion for  theatrical  amusements,  for  the  wild  excitement 
of  the  horse-race,  and  the  combat  with  wild  beasts,  or 
even  more  licentious  entertainments,  had  carried  away 
many  of  the  clergy,  even  of  the  bishops.  A  law,  more 
than  once  re-enacted  and  modified,  while  it  acknowl- 
edged the  power  of  the  clergy's  prayers  to  obtain  victory 
over  the  barbarians  and  to  obtain  from  heaven  extended 
empire,  declared  that  for  this  reason  they  should  be 
unimpeachable.  But,  notwithstanding  the  most  solemn 
admonition,  they  could  not  be  persuaded,  not  even  the 
bishops,  to  abstain  from  the  gaming-table,  or  the  theatre 
with  all  its  blasphemies  and  license.  The  emperor  was 
compelled  to  pass  this  law,  prohibiting,  under  pain  of 
suspension  for  the  first  offense,  cf  irrevocable  degrada- 
tion and  servitude  to  the  public  corporations,  any  one  of 
the  clergy,  of  any  rank,  from  being  present  at  the  gam- 
ing-table or  at  any  public  spectacle.  These  penalties, 
with  other  religious  punishments,  as  fastings,  were  to  be 
inflicted,  according  to  the  rank  of  the  offender,  by  the 
bishop  or  the  metropolitan.  The  refusal  to  punish,  or 
the  endeavor  to  conceal,  such  offenses  made  both  the 


58  Simday  Legislation, 

civil  officers  and  ecclesiastics  liable  to  civil  as  well  as 
to  ecclesiastical  penalties. 

The  bishop  v/as  an  imperial  officer  for  certain  tem- 
poral affairs.  In  each  city  he  was  appointed,  with 
three  of  the  chief  citizens,  annually  to  inspect  the  pub- 
lic accounts,  and  all  possessions  or  bequests  made  for 
public  works,  markets,  aqueducts,  baths,  walls  and  gates, 
and  bridges.  Before  him  guardians  of  lunatics  swore  on 
the  Gospels  to  administer  their  trust  with  fidelity,  and 
many  legal  acts  might  be  performed  either  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Defensor  or  the  bishop  of  the  city.  For  the 
discharge  of  these  temporal  functions,  the  bishops  were 
reasonably  answerable  to  the  emperor,  and  thus  the  em- 
pire acknowledged,  at  the  inspiration  of  Christianity,  a 
new  order  of  magistracy. 

The  law  limited  the  number  of  clergy  to  be  attached 
to  each  church.  This  constitution  was  demanded  in 
order  to  check  that  multiplication  of  the  clergy  which 
exhausted  the  revenues  of  the  Church,  and  led  to  bur- 
densome debts.  In  the  great  church  at  Constantinople 
the  numbers  were  to  be  reduced  to  425,  besides  100 
ostiarii.  The  smaller  churches  were  on  no  account  to 
have  more  than  they  could  maintain.  .  .  . 

But  the  legislation  of  Justinian,  as  far  as  it  was  origi- 
nal, in  his  Code,  his  Pandects,  and  in  his  Institutions 
within  its  civil  domain,  was  still  almost  exclusively  Ro- 
man. It  might  seem  that  Christianity  could  hardly 
penetrate  into  the  solid  and  well-compacted  body  of  Ro- 
man law  ;  or  rather,  the  immutable  principles  of  justice 
had  been  so  clearly  discerned  by  the  inflexible  rectitude 
of  the  Roman  mind,  so  sagaciously  applied  by  the  wis- 
dom of  her  great  lawyers,  that  Christianity  was  content 
to  acquiesce  in   those  statutes,  which  even  she  might, 


After  the  Fall  cf  the  Roman  Emph^e,  59 

excepting  in  some  respects,  despair  of  rendering  more 
equitable.  Christianity  in  the  Roman  Empire  had  en- 
tered into  a  temporal  polity,  with  all  its  institutions  long 
settled,  its  laws  already  framed.  The  Christians  had,  in 
their  primitive  state,  no  natural  place  in  the  order  of 
things.  That  separate  authority  which  the  Church  exer- 
cised over  the  members  of  its  own  community  from  its 
origin,  and  without  which  the  loosest  form  of  society  can 
not  subsist,  was  in  no  v/ay  recognized  by  the  civil  power  ; 
they  were  the  voluntary  laws  of  a  voluntary  association. 
But,  besides  these  special  laws  of  their  own,  the  Chris- 
tians were  in  every  respect  subjects  of  the  empire.  They 
were  strangers  in  religion  alone.  After  the  comprehen- 
sive decree  of  Caracalla,  they,  like  the  rest  of  mankind 
within  the  pale  of  the  empire,  became  Roman  citizens  ; 
and  the  supremacy  of  the  state  in  all  things  which  did 
not  concern  the  vital  principles  of  their  religion  (for 
which  they  were  still  bound,  if  the  civil  power  should 
exercise  compulsion,  to  suffer  martyrdom)  was  acknowl- 
edged both  in  the  West  and  in  the  East,  both  before  and 
after  the  conversion  of  Constantine. 

Milman,  "  History  of   Latin  Christianity,"  book 
iii,  chap.  v. 

The  various  influences  which  united  to  bring- 
about  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire  made  it  pos- 
sible for  the  Church,  already  incorporated  with  the 
state  through  civil  legislation,  to  rise  to  imperial 
power  upon  the  ruins  of  the  broken  empire.  The 
Pope  soon  became  what  the  emperor  had  been. 
The  Church  had  been  much  strengthened,  politi- 
cally, by  the  exemption  from  most  public  burdens 
which  had  been  granted  to  the  clergy.     This  ex- 


6o  Sunday  Legislation, 

emption  was  not,  however,  made  as  a  favor  to 
Christianity,  but  was  granted  to  the  representa- 
tives of  Christianity,  as  it  had  already  been  grant- 
ed to  heathen  priests,  to  Jewish  rulers  of  the  syna- 
gogue, to  rhetoricians,  and  in  part,  at  least,  to 
physicians.  It  was  first  granted  to  the  orthodox 
clergy  by  Constantine  in  313  A.  D,  These  politi- 
cal favors  caused  such  a  rush  into  the  ranks  of  the 
clergy  that  the  interests  of  the  state  were  injured 
while  the  Church  was  corrupted.  The  freedom 
from  taxation  thus  granted  depleted  the  treasury 
of  the  empire,  so  that  in  a  very  brief  period  (320 
A.  D.)  it  was  found  necessary  to  forbid  the  wealthy 
to  enter  the  service  of  the  Church.  The  support 
of  the  clergy  from  the  treasury  of  the  state  in- 
creased the  prevailing  evils,  and  steadily  degraded 
those  who  ministered  at  the  altars  of  Christianity. 
So  it  came  about  that  when  the  empire  fell  the 
state-church  rose  upon  its  ruins,  and  the  "  Holy 
Roman  Empire  "  was  the  legitimate  successor  of 
the  fallen  pagan  empire.  Let  the  reader  bear  in 
mind  that  the  point  urged  in  these  pages  is  that 
all  this  union  of  Church  and  State,  this  regulating 
of  the  ceremonies  and  doctrines  of  Christianity  by 
civil  law,  this  granting  of  political  and  financial 
favors  and  influence  to  the  clergy,  this  combining 
of  the  spiritual  and  temporal  power,  sprang  from 
the  heathen  cultus.  Whatever  may  have  been  the 
necessities  or  the  unavoidable  results  from  the  com- 
binations which  took  place,  these  results,  especial- 
ly in  the  matter  of  legislation,  were  from  pagan 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  6i 

sources.  With  these  facts  before  us,  we  are  well 
prepared  to  understand  the  character  of  the  legis- 
lation which  was  continued  through  the  middle 
age,  especially  if  we  note,  before  entering  upon 
this  specific  legislation,  the  character  of  the  mid- 
dle age  in  general. 

The  Middle  Age. 

The  middle  age  was  necessarily  one  of  igno- 
rance and  disorder.  During  the  earlier  period 
Christianity  had  been  in  conflict  with  cultivated 
heathenism,  with  refined  philosophies,  and  subtle 
immorality.  In  the  middle  age  the  battle  was 
with  rude  and  ignorant  barbarism,  crude,  cruel, 
but  robust,  and  free  from  the  weaknesses  of  an  effete 
civilization.  We  do  not  complain  because  history 
is  not  other  than  it  is.  Considering  the  choice 
which  men  made,  it  could  not  have  been  other- 
wise. But  we  do  insist  that  neither  the  Roman- 
ized period  under  the  empire,  nor  the  following 
night,  was  in  accord  with  true  Christianity,  nor 
was  it  the  product  of  the  New  Testament  doc- 
trine. It  is  our  duty  to  test  all  questions  by  the 
Bible,  the  clear  light,  and  not  by  the  waning 
light  of  the  imperial  time,  nor  the  starlight  of  the 
succeeding  night.     Dr.  Schaff  says  : 

The  mediaeval  light  was  indeed  the  borrowed  star 
an*d  moonlight  of  ecclesiastical  tradition,  rather  than  the 
clear  sunlight  from  the  inspired  pages  of  the  Ncav  Testa- 
ment ;  but  it  was  such  light  as  the  eyes  of  nations  in 


62  Sunday  Legislation, 

their  ignorance  could  bear,  and  it  never  ceased  to  shine 
till  it  disappeared  in  the  daylight  of  the  great  Reforma- 
tion. Christ  had  his  witnesses  in  all  ages  and  countries, 
and  those  shine  all  the  brighter  who  were  surrounded 
by  midnight  darkness. 

"  Pause  where  we  may  upon  the  desert  road, 
Some  shelter  is  in  sight,  some  sacred,  safe  abode." 

On  the  other  hand,  the  middle  ages  are  often  called, 
especially  by  Roman  Catholic  v/riters,  ''  the  ages  of 
faith."  They  abound  in  legends  of  saints,  which  had 
the  charm  of  religious  novels.  All  men  believed  in  the 
supernatural  and  miraculous  as  readily  as  children  do 
now.  Heaven  and  hell  were  as  real  to  the  mind  as  the 
kingdom  of  France  and  the  republic  of  Venice.  Skepti- 
cism and  infidelity  were  almost  unknown,  or  at  least 
suppressed  and  concealed.  But  with  faith  was  con- 
nected a  vast  deal  of  superstition,  and  an  entire  absence 
of  critical  investigation  and  judgment.  Faith  was  blind 
and  unreasoning,  like  the  faith  of  children.  The  most 
incredible  and  absurd  legends  were  accepted  without  a 
question.  And  yet  the  morality  was  not  a  whit  better, 
but  in  many  respects  ruder,  coarser,  and  more  passion- 
ate than  in  modern  times. 

The  Church,  as  a  visible  organization,  never  had 
greater  power  over  the  minds  of  men.  She  controlled 
all  departments  of  life  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave.  She 
monopolized  all  the  learning,  and  made  sciences  and 
arts  tributary  to  her.  She  took  the  lead  in  every  pro- 
gressive movement.  She  founded  universities,  built 
lofty  cathedrals,  stirred  up  the  crusades,  made  and  un- 
made kings,  dispensed  blessings  and  curses  to  whole 
nations.      The  niediseval  hierarchy  centering  in  Rome 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  63 

re-enacted  the  Jewish  theocracy  on  a  more  comprehen- 
sive scale.  It  was  a  carnal  anticipation  of  the  millennial 
reign  of  Christ.  It  took  centuries  to  rear  up  this  im- 
posing structure  and  centuries  to  take  it  down  again. 

"  Church  History,"  vol.  iv,  pp.  12,  13. 

As  we  begin  our  search  for  the  Sunday 
through  this  deepening  darkness,  wherein  the  in- 
vestigator must  grope  his  way,  we  find  it  still  as- 
sociated with  a  large  group  of  other  holidays, 
whi-ch  are  held  in  equal  sacredness  with  it.  If 
Sunday  seems  to  be  more  prominent  than  these, 
it  is  because  of  its  weekly  recurrence,  Avhile  many 
others  were  but  annual.  Remember,  too,  that 
the  hierarchy  of  that  time  assumed  to  legislate  for 
the  people,  as  God  had  done  for  the  Israelites ; 
and  hence,  by  the  law  of  analogy,  an  extreme 
Judaic  strictness  was  sometimes  developed  con- 
cerning the  Sunday  and  its  associate  holy  days. 
We  shall  give  the  important  enactments  through- 
out this  period,  paying  particular  attention  to  the 
Anglo-Saxon  laws,  out  of  which  grew  the  Eng- 
lish, and  hence  our  own  Sunday  laws. 

In  the  development  of  the  Church-and-State 
idea,  during  the  Roman  period,  the  clergy  had 
been  intrusted  with  much  power  in  hearing  and 
deciding  business  matters  between  such  as  did  not 
wish  to  go  to  law  before  heathen  judges.  Hence 
arose  the  practice  of  hearing  such  causes  on  Sun- 
day The  Council  of  Tarragon,  in  516A.D.,  or- 
dered as  follows : 


64  Stmday  Legislation, 

Let  not  any  bishop  or  presbyter  or  any  of  the  inferior 
clergy  hear  causes  on  the  Lord's  day,  etc.,  .  .  .  but  let 
them  be  occupied  in  the  performance  of  the  solemnities 
ordained  in  honor  of  God. 

"Council  of  Tarragon,"  chap,  iv,  can.  xv  ;  Binius, 
tome  X,  p.  625. 

In  538  A.  D.,  the  Third  Council  of  Orleans  en- 
acted the  following  : 

Whereas  the  people  are  persuaded  that  they  ought 
not  to  travel  on  the  Lord's  day  with  the  horses,  or  oxen  and 
carriages,  or  to  prepare  anything  for  food,  or  to  do  any- 
thing conducive  to  the  cleanliness  of  houses  or  men,  things 
which  belong  to  Jewish  rather  than  Christian  observ- 
ances ;  we  have  ordained  that  on  tlie  Lord's  day  what 
was  before  lawful  to  be  done  may  still  be  done.  But 
from  rural  work,  i.  e.,  plowing,  cultivating  vines,  reaping, 
mowing,  thrashing,  clearing  away  thorns  or  hedging,  we 
judge  it  better  to  abstain,  that  the  people  may  the  more 
readily  come  to  the  churches  and  have  leisure  for 
prayers.  If  any  one  be  found  doing  the  works  forbid- 
den above,  let  him  be  punished,  not  as  the  civil  authori- 
ties may  direct,  but  as  the  ecclesiastical  powers  may  de- 
termine. 

"  Council   of   Orleans  III,"  can.  xxviii ;    Binius, 
tome  xi,  p.  496;  or  Labbe,  ix,  p.  19. 

In  578  A.  1).  the  Council  of  Auxerre  ordered 
as  follows : 

On  the  Lord's  day  it  is  not  permitted  to  yoke  oxen 
or  to  perform  any  other  work  except  for  appointed 
reasons. 

"  Council  of  Auxerre,"  can.  xvi ;  Binius,  tome  xiii, 
p.  44. 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  65 

About  the  same  time  Pope  Gregory  I  made  a 
similar  law  at  Rome,  At  a  later  date — about  850 
A.  D. — it  was  repealed  by  Nicholas  I.  In  585 
A.  D.  the  Second  Council  of  Macon,  following  the 
lead  of  that  of  Auxerre,  enacted  as  follows. 
After  a  prelude,  in  which  it  is  stated  that  Chris- 
tian people  treat  the  Sunday  with  great  con- 
tempt, as  if  it  were  like  other  days,  and  because 
former  warnings  remained  unheeded,  it  is  or- 
dered : 

Keep  the  Lord's  day  whereon  ye  were  born  anew 
and  freed  from  all  sin.  Let  no  one  spend  his  leisure  in 
litigation  ;  let  no  one  continue  the  pleading  of  any 
cause.  Let  no  one  under- plea  of  necessity  allow  him- 
self to  place  a  yoke  on  the  neck  of  his  cattle.  Let  all 
be  occupied  in  mind  and  body  in  hymns,  and  in  the 
praise  of  God.  If  any  one  dwells  near  a  church,  let 
him  go  thereto,  and  upon  the  Lord's  day  engage  with 
prayers  and  tears.  Let  your  eyes  and  hands  on  that  day 
be  lifted  up  to  God.  For  this  is  the  day  of  perpetual  rest. 
This  is  shadowed  to  us  in  the  seventh  day  in  the  law 
and  the  prophets.  It  is  right,  therefore,  that  we  should 
all  celebrate  this  day,  through  which  we  are  made  to  be 
what  we  were  not ;  for  we  were  in  sin,  but  through  this 
we  were  made  righteous.  Let  us  then  yield  a  willing 
service  to  the  Lord,  through  whom  we  know  ourselves 
to  have  been  freed  from  the  bonds  of  error.  Not  be- 
cause our  Lord  requires  it  of  us  that  we  should  cele- 
brate this  day  by  constraint  of  the  body,  but  he  seeks 
obedience,  by  which,  trampling  on  earthly  things,  we 
may  be  lifted  to  heaven    through   his   mercy.     If  any 


66  Sunday  Legislation, 

one  shall  disregard  this  wholesome  exhortation,  or  treat 
it  contemptuously,  he  shall,  in  the  first  place,  draw  upon 
himself  the  wrath  of  God ;  and  secondly,  the  unappeasa- 
ble anger  of  the  clergy.  If  he  be  an  advocate,  let  him 
wholly  lose  the  privilege  of  pleading  the  cause  ;  if  a 
countryman  or  a  slave,  let  him  be  soundly  beaten  with 
whips  ;  if  a  clerk  or  a  monk,  let  him  be  suspended  from 
the  society  of  his  brethren  for  the  space  of  six  months. 
For  all  these  things  may  we  be  rendered  pleasing  unto 

God. 

"Council  Macon  II,"  can.  ii ;  Labbe,  ix,  p.  947  ; 

also  Binius,  tome  xiii,  pp.  75,  76. 

By  the  next  canon  of  this  council  the  entire 
paschal  season  is  treated  as  being  equally  holy, 
and  ordered  to  be  held  in  equal  reverence.  In 
813  A.  D.,  under  Charlemagne,  the  Council  of 
Mayence  enacted  the  following: 

We  decree  that  all  Lord's  days  shall  be  observed 
with  all  due  veneration,  and  that  all  servile  work  shall 
be  abstained  from,  and  that  buying  and  selling  may  be 
less  likely  to  happen,  there  shall  be  no  judicial  trials, 
unless  concerning  capital  crimes. 

"  Council  Mayence,"  can.  xxxvii ;    Binius,  tome 
XX,  p.  357.  Also,  "  Capitularies,"  lib,  v,  cap.  88. 

In  the  same  year  a  council  at  Rheims  expressed 
the  same  idea  as  follows : 

Upon  all  Lord's  days,  according  to  the  precept  of 
the  Lord,  no  servile  work  whatever  ought  to  be  per- 
formed ;  neither   should    any  court   be   convened,  nor 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  67 

should  it  be  presumed  to  make  any  public  largess,  nor 
any  mercantile  transactions. 

"Council  of  Rheims,"  can.  xxxv;  Binius,  tome 
XX,  p.  idZ. 

In  853  A.  D.  the  Second  Council  of  Soissons, 
under  Charles  the  Bold,  extended  the  law  to  many 
other  days. 

From  Septuagesima  till  eight  days  after 
Easter,  and  from  the  coming  of  our  Lord  until 
eight  days  after  Epiphany,  during  the  fasts  of  the 
four  seasons,  on  the  day  of  the  great  litanies,  and 
on  rogation  days,  the  trial  of  causes  was  for- 
bidden. 

In  858  A.  D.  Pope  Nicholas  I  gave  certain  in- 
struction to  the  Burgundians,  who  had  but  lately 
embraced  Christianity.  He  taught  them  that 
there  were  no  days  on  which  works  of  necessity, 
such  as  journeying,  fighting,  etc.,  might  not  be 
performed.  He  urges  that  "•  our  hopes  do  not 
rest  upon  the  observance  of  days,  but  upon  the 
true  and  living  end."  But  if  necessity  does  not 
prevent,  the  leisure  of  these  days  ought  to  be  spent 
in  prayer,  "  and  in  attending  on  the  mysteries  of 
these  great  festivals."  His  orders  involved  not 
only  Sunday,  but  the  ''  feasts  of  the  Virgin,  the 
feasts  of  the  Apostles  and  Evangelists,  the  birth- 
days of  other  saints,  and  the  season  of  Lent." 
(Binius,  tome  xxii,  pp.  453,  454,  459;  also  Labbe, 
tome  ix,  p.  1091.) 

The  emperors  of  this  period  sent  out  officers 


68  Sunday  Legislatio7i, 

from  time  to  time,  as  fancy  or  occasion  demanded, 
to  enforce  laws  and  reform  abuses.  These  officers 
were  called  '^  missi  dominici,''  and  their  instruc- 
tions were  called  ''  capitularies."  Among  the 
penalties  prescribed  in  these  were  the  following : 
"  If  one  yoke  oxen  to  a  cart  and  drive  them,  walk- 
ing beside  it,  he  is  to  be  punished  by  the  loss  of 
the  right  ox."  Performing  servile  work  in  gen- 
eral, subjected  one  to  such  punishment  as  the 
clergy  saw  fit  to  impose,  and  the  civil  power 
might  be  called  upon  to  aid  in  enforcing  these 
penalties.  (See  Neale, ''  Feasts  and  Fasts,"  pp.  98, 
99,  and  Labbe,  xv,  16.) 

In  895  A.  D.,  during  the  reign  of  the  Emperor 
Arnulph,  the  Council  of  Triburary  forbade  the 
holding  of  courts  on  Sunday,  Saints'  days,  Lent, 
and  other  festivals.  (See  ''  Council  of  Triburary," 
can.  XXXV  ;    Binius,  tome  xxi,  p.  661.) 

In  932,  under  Henry  I,  a  council  at  Erfurt,  in 
Saxony,  designated  the  seasons  named  above  by 
the  Council  of  Triburai*y,  and  added  to  them  the 
following,  as  non-judicial  days :  ''  Seven  days  be- 
fore Christmas,  eight  days  before  Easter,  and  seven 
days  before  the  nativity  of  John  the  Baptist,  and 
the  whole  season  of  Lent,  that  more  time  might 
be  allowed  for  prayers,  and  for  attending  the 
churches."  (See  "  Council  at  Erfurt,"  can.  ii;  Bin- 
ius, tome  XXV,  p.  37.) 

The  entire  system  of  holy  days,  during  the 
middle  ages,  rested  on  a  common  basis,  and  their 
observance  was  enforced  by  a  common  authority, 


After  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire.  69 

viz.,  the  commands  of  the  Church.  There  was 
great  lack  of  uniformity,  both  in  the  character  of 
these  requirements  and  in  their  enforcement. 
Rulers,  councils,  and  localities  varied  from  each 
other  and  often  contradicted  each  other.  The 
whole  scene  is  one  of  ignorance,  superstition,  low 
moral  and  spiritual  life,  darkness,  and  chaos. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

SAXON   LAWS   CONCERNING   SUNDAY. 

It  is  difficult,  and  sometimes  impossible,  to  ob- 
tain accurate  dates  in  the  earlier  periods  of  his- 
tory. It  is  equally  difficult  to  secure  uniformity 
in  the  spelling  of  proper  names,  and  names  of 
localities  during  the  formative  period  of  a  lan- 
guage. Both  of  these  difficulties  environ  the  in- 
vestigator of  early  Saxon  history.  We  have  con- 
sulted only  the  standard  authorities  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  the  following,  deciding  dates  and  spell- 
ing according  to  the  weight  of  evidence,  or  of 
probabilities. 

All  Sunday  legislation  is  the  product  of  pagan 
Rome.  The  Saxon  laws  were  the  product  of  the 
middle-age  legislation  of  the  "  Holy  Roman  Em- 
pire." The  English  laws  are  an  expansion  of  the 
Saxon,  and  the  American  arc  a  transcript  of  the 
English.  Our  own  laws  were  all  inchoate  in 
those  which  are  found  below.  Besides  the  author- 
ities cited  in  full  below,  the  reader  is  referred 
to   **  Ancient  Laws  and    Institutes  of    England," 


Saxoji  Laws  Concerning  Stmday,       71 

edited    by    Benjamin    Thorpe,    and    printed    by 
command  of  William  III,  in  1840. 

Ine  became  King  of  Wessex,  688  A.  D.,  and 
reigned  until  725.     Law  3  of  his  is  as  follows  : 

If  a  theowman  (slave)  work  on  Sunday  by  his  lord's 
command,  let  him  be  free  ;  and  let  the  lord  pay  thirty  shil- 
lings as  a  fine.  But  if  the  theow  work  without  his  knowl- 
edge, let  him  suffer  in  his  hide,  or  in  hide-gild  (money 
paid  in  lieu  of  corporal  punishment).  But  if  a  freeman 
work  on  that  day  without  his  lord's  command,  let  him 
forfeit  his  freedom,  or  sixty  shillings;  and  be  a  priest 
doubly  liable.     (Thorpe,  p.  69.) 

The  following  laws  of  Withread,  King  of  Kent- 
ishmen  from  690  to  725  A.  D.,  were  passed  about 
696  A.  D. : 

Law  9.  If  a  slave  (esne)  do  any  servile  labor,  con- 
trary to  his  lord's  command,  from  sunset  on  Sunday  eve 
till  sunset  on  Monday  eve,  let  him  make  a  compensation 
(hot)  of  eighty  shillings  to  his  lord. 

Law  10.  If  an  esne  so  do  of  his  own  accord  on  that 
day,  let  him  make  a  "  bot  "  of  six  to  his  lord,  or  his  hide. 

Law  II.  But  if  a  freeman  [so  do]  at  t^e  forbidden 
time,  let  him  be  liable  to  his  heals-fang  (a  fine  paid  to 
save  himself  from  the  pillory),  and  the  man  who  detects 
him,  let  him  have  half  the  fine  (wite)  and  the  work. 
(Thorpe,  p.  17.) 

Among  the  laws  of  the  eighth  century,  is  one 
found  in  the  ''  Canons  of  Cuthbert,"  enacted  at 
Clovis  Hoo,  November,  747  a.  d.,  in  the  reign  of 


*]2  Sunday  Legislation, 

Eidelbald,  King  of  the  Mercians.     It  runs  as  fol- 
lows : 

In  the  fourteenth  place  it  is  ordained  that  the  Lord's 
day  be  celebrated  by  all,  with  due  veneration  and  wholly 
separated  for  divine  service.  And  let  all  abbots  and 
priests,  on  that  most  sacred  day,  remain  in  their  monas- 
teries and  churches,  and  say  solemn  mass  ;  and  lay  aside 
all  external  business,  and  secular  meetings,  and  journey- 
ings,  except  the  cause  be  invincible  ;  let  them  by  preach- 
ing instruct  the  servants  subject  to  them,  from  the  oracle 
of  the  holy  Scriptures,  the  rules  of  religious  conversation, 
and  of  good  living.  It  is  also  decreed  that  on  that  day, 
and  tHe  great  festivals,  the  priests  of  God  do  often  invite 
the  people  to  meet  in  the  church,  and  be  present  at  the 
sacraments  of  masses  and  at  preaching  of  sermons. 

"  Laws  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England, 
from  its  foundation  to  Henry  VIII,"  by  John 
Johnson,  M.  A.,  Vicar  of  Cranbroke,  etc., 
Oxford,  1850.     Vol.  i,  p.  249. 

Alfred  held  the  throne  of  Wessex  from  871  to 
901  A.  D.  The  5  th  law  of  his  code  declares  in 
these  words : 

He  who  steals  on  Sunday,  or  at  Yule,  or  at  Easter, 

or  on  Holy  Thursday,  or  on  Rogation  days,  the  fine  shall 

be  double  what  it  is  in  the  Lenten  fast.    (Thorpe,  p.  29.) 

Laws  of  Edward  the  Elder,  and  Guthrum,  made 

after  the  peace  between  the  Danes  and  the 

English,  901  to  924  a.  d. 

Law  7.  If  any  one  engage  in  Sunday  marketing,  let 

him   forfeit  the  chattel,  and    twelve  ores  (192   pence), 

among  the  Danes,  and  thirty  shillings  among  the  Eng- 


Saxon  Laws  Concerning  Sunday,       J2^ 

lish.  If  a  freeman  work  on  a  festival  day,  let  him  forfeit 
his  freedom,  or  pay  a  fine  (wite  or  lah-slit).  Let  a  theow- 
man  suffer  in  his  hide,  or  hide-gild.  If  a  lord  oblige  his 
theow  to  work  on  a  festival  day,  let  him  pay  lah-slit 
within  the  Danish  law,  and  wite  among  the  English. 
(Thorpe,  p.  73.) 

Wite  and  lah-slit  are  equivalent  to  "fine." 
This  law  is  headed,  "  Of  working  on  a  festival 
da3^"  Sunday  only  is  designated,  but  the  law 
seems  to  include  other  festivals.  The  date  is  un- 
certain, and  may  be  earlier  than  as  above,  possibly 
as  early  as  878  A.  D. 

The  laws  enacted  by  the  Council  of  Greatanlea, 
under  ^thelstane  about  924  A.  D.,  include  the 
following : 

Law  24.  And  that  no  marketing  be  on  Sundays  ;  but 
if  any  one  do  so,  let  him  forfeit  the  goods,  and  pay  thirty 
shillings  as  wite.     (Thorpe,  p.  90. ) 

In  the  year  943  A.  D.,  Odo,  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury, issued  the  following  appeal : 

Canon  9.  We  admonish  that  fasting  with  alms  be  very 
carefully  observed ;  for  these  are  the  three  wings  which 
carry  saints  to  heaven ;  wherefore  endeavor  to  keep  the 
fast  of  Lent,  of  the  Four  Seasons,  and  other  lawful 
fasts  as  of  the  fourth  and  sixth  days  of  the  week,  with 
great  vigilance  ;  and  above  all,  the  Lord's  day  and  the 
Festivals  of  Saints,  ye  are  to  take  care  that  ye  observe 
with  all  caution  from  all  secular  work.  Consent  to  no 
vain  superstitions ;  nor  worship  the  creature  more  than 


74  Sunday  Legislation. 

the  Creator,  with  magical  ilhisions ;  for  they  who  do  such 
things  shall  not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God. 

"Laws  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England, 
from  its  foundation  to  Henry  VIII,"  by  John 
Johnson,  M.  A.,  Vicar  of  Cranbroke,  etc. 
Oxford,  1850.     Vol.  i,  p.  362. 

King  Edgar  reigned  from  959  to  975  A.  D. 
Among  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  his  reign,  number 
5  is  as  follows : 

And  let  the  festivals  of  every  Sunday  be  kept  from 
the  noon-tide  of  Saturday  till  the  dawn  of  Monday,  on 
peril  of  the  wite  which  the  doom-book  specifies ;  and 
every  other  mass-day,  as  it  may  be  commanded  ;  and  let 
every  ordained  fast  be  kept  with  every  earnestness  ;  and 
every  Friday's  fast,  unless  it  be  a  festival ;  and  let  soul 
scot  (a  tax)  be  paid  for  every  Christian  man  to  the 
minister  to  which  it  is  due  ;  and  let  every  church-grith 
(privilege)  stand  as  it  has  best  stood.     (Thorpe,  p.  112.) 

Among  the  "  Canons  of  Edgar,"  we  find  the 
following  : 

18.  And  we  enjoin,  that  on  feast  days,  heathen  songs 
and  devil's  games  be  abstained  from. 

19.  And  we  enjoin  that  Sunday  trading  and  folk- 
motes  be  abstained  from,     (Thorpe,  p.  397.) 

Certain  laws  are  attributed  to  ^Ifric,  the  "  Un- 
known Archbishop,"  whose  date  is  also  unknown, 
but  is  placed  from  957  to  105 1  A.  D.  Among  these 
"  Canons,"  number  36  is  as  follows : 

We  command  you,  mass  priests,  that  ye  command  all 
the  people  who  look  to  you,  and  over  whom  ye  are  con- 


Saxon  Laws  C oncer 7ting  Sunday.       75 

fessors,  that  the  four  first  Easter-days  be  freed  from  all 
servile  work  ;  because  at  that  tide  all  the  world  was 
freed  from  the  thraldom  of  the  devil.  And  let  Sunday's 
festival  be  held  from  the  noon  of  Saturday  until  the 
dawn  of  Monday.     (Thorpe,  p.  450.) 

Among  the  Ecclesiastical  Institutes  of  JElfric, 
we  find  the  following: 

24.  Sunday  is  very  solemnly  to  be  reverenced,  there- 
fore we  command  that  no  man  dare  on  that  holy  day  to 
apply  to  any  worldly  work,  unless  for  the  preparing  of 
his  meat ;  except  it  happen  to  any  one  that  he  must  of 
necessity  journey  ;  then  he  may  either  ride,  or  row,  or 
journey  by  such  conveyance  as  may  be  suitable  to  his 
way,  on  the  condition  that  he  hear  his  mass,  and  neglect 
not  his  prayers.  On  Sunday  God  first  created  the  light, 
and  on  that  day  he  sent  to  the  people  of  Israel,  in  the 
desert,  heavenly  bread  ;  and  on  that  day  he  rose  from 
death,  when  he  before,  with  his  own  will,  had  suffered 
death  for  the  salvation  of  mankind ;  and  on  that  day  he 
sent  the  Holy  Ghost  into  his  disciples.  It  is  therefore 
very  highly  fitting  that  every  Christian  man  very  rever- 
ently honor  that  day.  And  it  is  fitting  that  every  Chris- 
tian man  who  can  accomplish  it,  come  to  church  on 
Saturday  and  bring  light  with  him,  and  there  hear  even- 
song, and  before  dawn,  matins,  and  in  the  morning  come 
with  their  offerings  to  the  celebration  of  the  mass.  And 
v/hen  they  come  thither,  let  there  be  no  iniquity,  nor 
any  strifes,  nor  any  discord  heard,  but  with  calm  mind 
at  the  holy  service,  let  them  intercede  both  for  them- 
selves, and  for  all  God's  people,  both  with  their  prayers, 
and  with  their  alms ;  and  after  the  holy  service,  let  each 
return  home,  and  with  his  friends  and  his  neighbors,  and 


76  Sunday  Legislation. 

with  strangers,  enjoy  ghostly  refection,  and  guard  him- 
self against  gluttony  and  drunkenness.  (Thorpe,  p.  478.) 

These  Institutes  cover  many  daj^s  besides 
Sunday.  Speaking  of  the  Quadragesima  period, 
the  forty-first  one  enacts : 

Every  Sunday,  at  this  holy  tide,  people  should  go  to 
housel,  except  those  men  who  are  excommunicated.  So 
also  on  Thursday  before  Easter,  and  on  the  Friday,  and 
on  Easter  eve,  and  on  Easter  day,  and  all  the  days  of 
Easter  week  are  with  like  piety  to  be  celebrated, 
(Thorpe,  p.  487.) 

Law  13  of  the  group  known  as  Liber  Constitti- 
iioritm,  enacted  under  Ethelread  (978  to  1016  A.  D.), 
reads : 

Let  Sunday's  festival  be  rightly  kept,  as  is  thereto 
becoming ;  and  let  marketings,  and  folk-motes  be  care- 
fully abstained  from  on  that  holy  day.    (Thorpe,  p.  131.) 

Law  22  of  the  Council  of  Enham,  under  the 
same  king,  is  in  these  words : 

And  let  festivals  and  fasts  be  rightly  kept.  Let  Sun- 
day's festival  be  rightly  kept,  as  is  thereto  becoming ; 
and  let  marketings,  and  folk-motes,  and  huntings,  and 
worldly  works,  be  strictly  abstained  from  on  that  holy 
day.  And  let  all  St.  Mary's  solemn  feast  tides  be 
strictly  honored,  first  with  fasting,  and  afterwards  with 
festival  ;  and  at  the  celebration  of  every  apostle  let 
strict  fast  be  held,  except  that  on  the  festival  of  St. 
Philip  and  St.  James  we  enjoin  no  fast  on  account  of 
the  Easter  festival,  unless  any  one  will ;    else  let  other 


Saxon  Laws  Concerning  Sunday.       jj 

festivals  and  fasts  be  strictly  observed,  so  as  those  ob- 
served them  who  best  observed  them. 

Law  24.  And  let  fasts  be  kept  every  Friday,  unless  it 
be  a  festival. 

Law  43.  And  that  they  lawfully  render  God's  dues 
every  year,  and  rightly  hold  festivals  and  fasts. 

Law  44.  And  that  they  strictly  abstain  from  Sunday 
marketings  and  popular  meetings.  (Thorpe  ,  pp.  126, 
127,  139. 

In  another  group  of  laws  under  this  sovereign, 
a  fine  is  ordered  if  the  foregoing  laws  are  broken. 

In  a  group  of  laws  attributed  to  the  priests  of 
Northumbria,  of  unknown  date,  but  probably  be- 
longing to  the  last  half  of  the  tenth  centur}^,  the 
55th  reads  as  follows : 

Sunday  traffic  we  forbid  everywhere,  and  every  folk- 
mote,  and  every  work,  and  every  journey,  whether  in  a 
wain,  or  on  a  horse,  or  as  a  burthen.     (Thorpe,  p.  420.) 

Canute,  King  of  Denmark,  became  king  of  all 
England  in  1017  A.  D.  He  died  in  1035.  His  laws 
are  divided  into  ecclesiastical  and  secular.  Among 
the  former,  law  14  is  as  follows  : 

And  let  all  God's  dues  be  diligently  furthered,  as  is 
needful,  and  let  festivals  and  fasts  be  rightly  held  ;  and 
let  every  Sunday's  festival  be  held  from  the  noon  of  Sat- 
urday till  the  dawn  of  Monday,  and  every  other  mass- 
day  as  it  is  commanded. 

Law  15.  And  Sunday  marketing  we  also  strictly  for- 
bid, and  every  folk-mote,  unless  it  be  for  great  necessity  ; 
and  let  huntings  and  all  other  worldly  works  be  strictly 
abstained  from  on  that  holy  day. 


yS  Sufiday  Legislation, 

Law  17,  And  we  forbid  ordeals  and  oaths  (lawsuits 
and  court  trials)  on  festival  days  and  ember-days,  and 
from  adve?itii7n  domi?ii  until  the  eighth  day  be  passed 
after  the  twelfth  mass  day ;  and  from  Septuagesima  till 
fifteen  days  after  Easter.  And  St.  Edward's  mass-day 
the  Witan  Council  have  chosen  that  it  shall  be  celebrated 
over  all  England  on  the  fifteenth  Kal.  April.  And  St. 
Dunstan's  mass-day  on  the  fourteenth  Kal.  Junii.  And 
at  those  holy  tides,  let  there  be  as  it  is  right,  to  all  Chris- 
tian men,  general  peace  and  concord,  and  let  every  dis- 
pute be  settled.  And  if  any  one  owe  another,  "  borh  " 
or  "  bot "  for  secular  matters,  let  him  v/illingly  fulfill  it 
to  him,  before  or  after.     (Thorpe,  p.  157,  158.) 

The  observance  of  the  fasts  was  enjoined  with 
no  less  vigor  than  the  observance  of  Sunday.  Wc 
find  the  following  among  the  "  secular "  laws  of 
Canute  : 

Law  47.  If  a  freeman  break  a  lawful  fast,  let  him  pay 
lah-slit  among  the  Danes,  and  wite  among  the  English, 
as  the  deed  may  be.  It  is  sinful  that  any  one,  at  a  law- 
ful fast-tide,  eat  before  the  time,  and  yet  worse  that  any 
one  defile  himself  wi^^h  flesh  meat.  If  a  theowman  do 
so,  let  him  pay  with  his  hide,  or  hide-gild,  as  the  deed 
may  be. 

Secular  law  45  is  as  follows: 

If  it  can  be  helped,  no  condemned  man  should  be 
put  to  death  on  a  Sunday  festival,  unless  he  flee  or  fight ; 
but  let  him  be  secured  and  held  till  the  festival  day  be 
passed.  If  a  freeman  work  on  a  festival  day,  then  let 
him  make  *'  bot "  with  his  heals  fang,  and,  above  all, 
earnestly  make   '*  bot "    to    God,    so  as   he  may  be  in- 


Saxon  Laws  Concerning  Sitnday.       79 

structed.  If  a  theowman  work,  let  him  pay  with  his 
hide,  or  hide-gild,  according  as  the  deed  may  be.  If 
a  lord  compel  his  theow  to  work  upon  a  festival  day,  let 
him  forfeit  the  theow  and  be  he  afterward  folk-free  ; 
and  let  the  lord  pay  lah-slit  among  the  Danes,  and  wite 
among  the  English,  as  the  deed  may  be,  or  clear  him- 
self.    (Thorpe,  pp.  172,  173.) 

The  Sunday  Laws  of  Edward  the  Confessor, 
made  about  the  year  1056  A.  D.,  took  certain  days 
away  from  the  legal  vacations  which  had  been 
ordered  by  Canute,  but  added  others.  The  law  of 
Edward  is  as  follows: 

Let  the  protection  of  God  and  the  Holy  Church  be 
throughout  the  whole  kingdom  from  the  Lord's  Advent 
to  the  octaves  of  Epiphany,  and  from  Septuagesima  till 
the  octaves  of  Easter,  and  from  the  Lord's  Ascension 
till  the  octaves  of  Pentecost,  and  in  all  the  days  of  Em- 
ber-weeks ;  and  every  Sabbath  from  the  ninth  hour,  and 
through  the  whole  following  day  till  Monday  ;  also  on 
the  vigils  of  Saints  Mary,  Michael,  John  Baptist,  all  the 
apostles  and  saints  whose  festivals  are  bid  by  priests  on 
the  Lord's  days  ;  and  All-Saints  on  the  calends  of  No- 
vember, perpetually  from  the  ninth  hour  of  the  vigils, 
and  during  the  following  festival ;  also  in  parishes,  where 
the  dedication  day,  or  the  day  of  their  proper  saint  is 
celebrated ;  and  if  any  one  devoutly  go  to  celebrate  a 
saint,  let  him  have  protection  in  going,  staying,  and  re- 
turning, and  let  all  Christians  have  protection  when  they 
go  to  church  to  pray,  both  in  going  forth  and  returning. 
Let  them  have  absolute  protection  who  are  going  to 
dedication,  to  synods,  to  chapters,  whether  they  are  sum- 


8o  Stuiday  Legislation, 

moned,  or  go  of  their  own  accord  upon  business.  If 
any  one  being  excommunicated  betake  himself  to  the 
bishop  for  absolution,  let  him  enjoy  the  protection  of 
God  and  Holy  Church  in  going  and  returning.  Let  the 
bishop  in  his  own  court  prosecute  any  man  who  has  in- 
curred a  forfeiture  to  him.  Yet  if  any  one  out  of  arro- 
gance will  not  be  brought  to  satisfaction  in  the  bishop's 
court,  let  the  bishop  notify  him  to  the  king,  and  let  the 
king  constrain  the  malefactor  to  make  satisfaction  where 
the  forfeiture  is  due,  that  is,  first  to  the  bishop,  then  to 
himself.  So  there  shall  be  two  swords,  and  one  sword 
shall  help  the  other. 

"Ancient  Laws  and  Institutes  of  England,"  by 
Benjamin  Thorpe,  p.  190.  Also,  Spelman, 
vol.  i,  p.  619. 


CHAPTER  V. 

SUNDAY   LAWS   IN   ENGLAND. 

The  early  Sunday  laws  in  England  were  but 
the  expansion  of  the  Saxon  laws.  When  com- 
pared with  the  Saxon  laws,  they  show  the  suc- 
cessive links  by  which  our  Sunday  laws  have 
been  developed  from  the  original  source.  They 
are  of  great  value,  beyond  their  mere  historic  in- 
terest, in  showing  how  the  advance  of  civilization 
and  of  Christianity  has  left  the  original  idea  be- 
hind. 

In  1 28 1  A.  D.,  John  Peckham,  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  under  Edward  I,  explained  the  Fourth 
Commandment  to  the  priests  as  they  were  to 
teach  it  to  the  people.  That  explanation  runs  as 
follows : 

In  the  Third,  "  Remember  that  thou  keep,"  etc.,  the 
Christian  worship  is  enjoined,  to  which  laymen  as  well 
as  clerks  are  bound  ;  and  here  we  are  to  know  that  the 
obligation  to  observe  the  legal  Sabbath,  according  to 
the  form  of  the  Old  Testament,  is  at  an  end,  together 
with  the  other  ceremonies  in  that ;  to  which  in  the  New 
Testament  hath  succeeded  the  custom  of  spending  the 
Lord's  day,  and  other  solemn  days  appointed  by  the 


82  Sunday  Legislatio7i, 

authority  of  the  Church,  in  the  worship  of  God  ;  and 
the  manner  of  spending  these  days  is  not  to  be  taken 
from  the  superstition  of  the  Jews,  but  from  the  canoni- 
cal institutes. 

"  Laws  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England, 
from  its  Foundation  to  Henry  VIII,"  John- 
son, vol.  ii,  p.  284. 

A  statute  of  the  28th  of  Edward  III,  enacted 
in  1354  A.  D.,  reads  as  follows  : 

Item,  it  is  accorded  and  established,  that  showing  of 
wools  shall  be  made  at  the  staple  every  day  of  the  week, 
except  the  Sunday  and  solemn  feasts  of  the  year. 

"  The  Statutes  Relating  to  the  Ecclesiastical  and 
Eleemosynary  Institutes  of  England,"  by 
Archibald  John  Stephens,  vol.  i,  p.  dd. 

In  1359  A.  D.,  Islep,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
under  Edw^ard  III,  in  view  of  the  state  of  the 
kingdom,  issued  the  followin<r : 

Whereas,  the  most  excellent  prince,  our  lord,  the 
King  of  England,  is  now  going  to  make  an  expedition 
in  foreign  parts  v/ith  his  army  for  the  recovery  of  his 
right,  exposing  himself  as  a  soldier  to  the  doubtful 
events  of  war,  the  issue  whereof  is  in  the  hand  of  God ; 
we  who  have  hitherto  lived  under  his  protection  are,  by 
the  divine  favor  shining  on  us,  admonished  to  betake 
ourselves  to  prayer,  as  well  for  the  safety  of  every  one  of 
us  as  for  the  public  good,  lest  if  adverse  fortune  should 
invade  us  (which  God  forbid),  our  confusion  and  re- 
proach should  be  the  greater.  But,  though  it  is  pro- 
vided by  sanctions  of  law  and  canon  that  all  Lord's  days 


Sunday  Laws  m  England.  83 

be  venerably  observed  from  eve  to  eve,  so  that  neither 
markets,  negotiations,  or  courts  public  or  private,  ec- 
clesiastical or  secular,  be  kept,  or  any  country  work  done 
on  these  days,  that  so  every  faithful  man  remembering 
his  creation  may  then,  at  least,  go  to  his  parish  church, 
ask  pardon  for  his  offenses,  supply  his  omissions  and 
commissions  for  the  week,  honor  the  divine  mysteries, 
learn  and  keep  the  commandments  of  the  Church  there 
expounded,  and  earnestly  pour  out  prayers  to  God  in 
the  churches  that  are  consecrated  from  above  for  places 
of  prayer,  not  only  for  themselves,  but  for  every  degree 
of  men,  whether  of  secular  or  ecclesiastical  host,  laying 
aside  all  worldly  care  ;  yet  we  are  clearly,  to  our  heart's 
grief,  informed  that  a  detestable,  nay,  damnable  per- 
verseness  has  prevailed,  insomuch  that  in  many  places 
markets  not  only  for  victuals,  but  other  negotiations 
(which  can  scarce  be  without  frauds  and  deceits),  un- 
lawful meetings  of  men  who  neglect  their  churches,  vari- 
ous tumults,  and  other  occasions  of  evil  are  committed, 
revels  and  drunkenness,  and  many  other  dishonest  doings 
are  practiced,  from  whence  quarrels  and  scolds,  threats 
and  blows  and  sometimes  murder  proceeds  on  the  Lord's 
days,  in  contempt  of  the  honor  of  God ;  insomuch  that 
the  main  body  of  the  people  flock  to  these  markets,  by 
which  the  devil's  power  is  increased  ;  and  in  the  holy 
churches  where  the  God  of  peace  is  to  be  sought  and 
his  anger  more  easily  satisfied,  the  worship  of  God  and 
the  saints  ceaseth  by  reason  of  the  absence  of  the  faith- 
ful people,  the  sacred  m.ysteries  are  not  had  in  due  ven- 
eration, and  the  mutual  support  of  men  in  praying  is 
withdrawn,  to  the  great  decay  of  reverence  toward  God 
and  the  Church,  the  grievous  peril  of  souls,  and  to  the 
manifest  scandal  and  contempt  of  Christianity  ;  where- 


84  Sunday  Legislatio7i, 

fore  we  strictly  command  you,  our  brother,  that  ye,  with- 
out delay,  canonically  admonish  and  effectually  per- 
suade, in  virtue  of  obedience,  or  cause  to  be  admonished 
and  persuaded,  those  of  your  subjects  whom  ye  find 
culpable  in  the  premises,  that  they  do  wholly  abstain 
from  markets,  courts,  and  other  unlawful  practices  above 
described,  on  the  Lord's  days  for  the  future  ;  and  that 
such  of  them  as  are  come  to  years  of  discretion,  do  go 
to  their  parish  churches  to  do,  hear,  and  receive  what  the 
duty  of  the  day  requires  of  them ;  and  that  ye  restrain 
all  whatsoever  that  transgress  and  rebel  in  this  respect, 
both  in  general  and  particular,  with  Church  censures 
according  to  the  canon.  And  do  ye  further  enjoin  your 
flock  subject  to  you,  and  cause  them  to  be  enjoined, 
that  on  the  said  days,  and  at  other  times  when  they 
think  fit,  they  do  in  their  prayers  at  church  most  de- 
voutly recommend  our  lord,  the  king,  the  noblemen 
of  the  kingdom,  and  all  others  whatsoever  that  attend 
him  in  the  said  expedition,  and  their  safety  and  pros- 
perity, to  the  Lord  Most  High,  the  King  of  all  Kings  ; 
and  make  two  customary  processions  about  their  churches 
and  church-yards  every  week  for  them,  and  for  the 
peace  of  the  kingdom.  And  we  further  command  you 
that  ye  intimate  this  our  mandate  with  all  possible  speed 
to  our  fellow-bishops  and  suffragans  of  the  province  of 
Canterbury,  that  they  may  do  what  is  above  contained 
in  relation  to  their  subjects.  And  that  the  minds  of  the 
faithful  may  the  more  easily  be  incited  to  the  doing  of 
the  premises,  confiding  in  the  mercies  of  God,  and  in  the 
merits  and  prayers  of  his  most  holy  mother,  the  Virgin 
Mary,  and  of  blessed  Thomas,  the  glorious  martyr,  and 
of  the  other  saints,  we  grant  by  these  presents  forty 
days'  indulgence  to  all  Christians  throughout  our  prov- 


Sunday  Laws  in  England.  85 

ince,  who  shall  pray  In  the  manner  aforesaid,  and  ab- 
stain from  the  unlawful  practices  above  expressed,  so 
that  they  confess  their  sins  and  truly  repent  of  them. 
And  we  do  in  the  Lord  exhort  you  and  the  rest  of  our 
fellow-bishops,  that  ye  grant  indulgences  out  of  the 
treasure  of  the  Church  entrusted  with  you  to  them  that 
do  and  observe  what  is  above  specified.  And  do  ye 
before  the  feast  of  All-Saints  next  coming,  certify  us  by 
your  letters  patent  (containing  a  copy  of  these)  of  the 
day  when  ye  received  these  presents,  and  the  manner 
and  form  of  your  executing  thereof ;  and  do  ye  specially 
enjoin  our  said  brethren,  that  they  do  every  one  in  par- 
ticular take  care  to  certify  us  of  what  they  have  done 
in  like  manner. 

Dated  at  Otteford,  19  cal.  of  September,  a.  d.  1359, 
and  of  our  consecration  the  tenth. 

"Laws  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England 
from  its  Foundation  to  Henry  VIII,"  John- 
son, vol.  ii,  pp.  417-419.  Also,  "Sir  Henry 
Spelman's  Works,"  Latin,  vol.  ii,  p.  599. 


The  foregoing  appeal  and  command  seem  to 
have  been  of  little  avail.  Three  years  later,  1362 
A.  D.,  we  find  the  following — Islep's  "  Constitu- 
tions," No.  3 — which  shows  how  thoroughly  un- 
sabbatic  the  Sunday  was,  and  how  low  the  plane 
was  on  which  it  stood.  Edward  III  was  still 
on  the  throne  of  England  and  Urban  V  was  in  the 
papal  chair : 

Simon,  by  divine  permission.  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, primate  of  all  England,  legate  of  the  Apostolic  see, 
7 


86  Sunday  Legislation, 

to  our  venerable  brother  Simon,  by  the  grace  of  God 
Bishop  of  London,  health  and  brotherly  charity  in  the 
Lord.  We  learn  from  the  Holy  Scripture  that  vice  often 
appears  under  the  color  of  virtue.  At  the  first  creation 
of  man,  God  enjoined  him  to  cease  from  labor  on  the 
seventh  day  only  ;  but  the  militant  Church  in  the  times 
of  grace  has  added  several  other  days ;  and  some  of  these 
again,  by  the  toleration  of  the  Church,  were  taken  away 
for  the  convenience  of  men,  and  the  necessity  of  their 
laboring  ;  and  yet  some  local  festivals  were  added  to  be 
observed  by  Catholics  in  some  parts  ;  and  though  the 
custom  of  festivals  was  introduced  in  honor  of  the  saints, 
yet  by  the  levity  of  men,  what  was  instituted  out  of  a 
reverent  regard  to  the  elect  of  God,  has  been  turned  to 
their  reproach,  by  reason  that  disorderly  meetings  and 
negotiations  and  other  unlawful  exercises  are  practiced 
on  such  days,  and  what  was  intended  for  devotion  is 
converted  to  lewdness,  forasmuch  as  the  tavern  on  these 
days  is  more  frequented  than  the  church,  and  there  is 
greater  abundance  of  junkets  and  drunkenness  than  of 
tears  and  prayers  ;  and  men  spend  their  leisure  in  de- 
bauchery and  quarrels  more  than  in  devotion  ;  not  to 
omit  that  covenant  servants  (without  whose  labor  the 
commonwealth  can  not  subsist),  under  a  lawful  pretense, 
do  abstain  from  work  on  holydays  (though  of  their  own 
making),  and  on  the  vigils  of  saints,  and  yet  take  no  less 
on  that  account  for  their  weekly  wages,  by  which  the 
public  good  is  clogged  and  obstructed ;  nor  do  they 
sabbatize  in  honor  of  God,  but  to  the  scandal  of  Him 
and  Holy  Church,  as  if  these  solemnities  were  intended 
for  the  exercise  of  profaneness  and  mischief,  which  in- 
crease in  proportion  to  the  number  cf  these  days.  To 
prevent  superstitions,  evil  intentions,  and  frauds  of  cove- 


Sunday  Laws  in  England.  ^y 

nant  servants,  and  to  lessen  the  occasion  of  them,  and 
that  the  memories  of  the  saints  which  require  a  cessation 
from  labor  may  be  had  in  due  veneration,  according  to  the 
original  institution  of  the  Church,  with  the  advice  of  our 
brethren,  we  have  thought  fit  to  set  down  in  these  pres- 
ents the  feasts  on  which  all  people  in  our  province  of 
Canterbury  must  regularly  abstain  even  from  such  works 
as  are  profitable  to  the  commonwealth,  reserving  a 
power  to  ecclesiastical  men  and  to  other  great  persons, 
and  such  as  are,  in  this  respect,  self-sufficient,  of  solemn- 
ly observing  the  days  of  whatever  saints  they  please  to 
honor  God  in  their  own  churches  and  chapels.  In  the 
first  place,  the  holy  Lord's  day,  beginning  at  vespers  on 
the  Sabbath  day,  not  before,  lest  we  should  seem  pro- 
fessed Jews  ;  and  let  this  be  observed  in  feasts  that  have 
their  vigils  ;  also  the  feasts  of  the  Nativity  of  our  Lord, 
Saints  Stephen,  John,  Innocents,  Thomas  the  Martyr, 
Circumcision,  Epiphany  of  the  Lord,  Purification  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  Saint  Matthias  Apostle,  Annunciation  of 
the  Blessed  Virgin,  Easter  v/ith  the  three  following  days, 
Saint  Mark  the  Evangelist,  the  Apostles  Philip  and 
Jacob,  Invention  of  the  Holy  Cross,  Ascension  of  the 
Lord,  Pentecost,  v/ith  the  three  following  days,  Corpus 
Christi,  Nativity  of  St.  John  Baptist,  Apostles  Peter  and 
Paul,  Translation  of  St.  Thomas,  St.  Mary  Magdalene, 
St.  James  Apostle,  Assumption  of  the  Blessed  Virgin, 
St.  Laurence,  St.  Bartholomew,  Nativity  of  St.  Mary, 
Exaltation  of  the  Holy  Cross,  St.  MatAew,  St.  Michael, 
St.  Luke  Evangelist,  Apostles  Simon  and  Jude,  All- 
Saints,  St.  Andrew,  St.  Nicholas,  Conception  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  St.  Thomas  Apostle,  the  solemnity  of  the 
dedication  of  every  parish  church,  and  of  the  saints  to 
whom  every  parish  church  is  dedicated,  and  other  feasts 


88  Sunday  Legislation, 

enjoined  in  every  diocese  by  the  ordinaries  of  the  places 
in  particular,  and  of  their  certain  knowledge.  We 
therefore  command  you  that  ye  notify  all  and  singu- 
lar the  premises,  to  all  our  brethren  and  suffragans,  en- 
joining every  one  of  them  that  they  admonish  and 
effectually  persuade  the  clergy  and  people  subject  to 
them,  strictly  to  observe  and  with  honor  to  venerate  the 
feasts  above  rehearsed  as  they  fall  in  their  seasons  ;  and 
let  them  reverently  go  to  the  parish  churches  on  those 
days  and  stay  out  the  conclusion  of  the  masses  and 
other  divine  offices,  praying  devoutly  and  sincerely  to  God 
for  the  salvation  of  themselves  and  the  rest  of  the  faithful, 
both  quick  and  dead ;  that  by  thus  going  the  circle  of  the 
solemnities  of  the  saints,  they  and  other  Catholics  for 
whom  they  pray  may  deserve  the  constant  intercession 
of  the  saints,  whose  feasts  they  celebrate,  with  Almighty 
God.  And  let  our  brethren  intimate  to  their  subjects 
that  on  the  other  feasts  of  the  saints  they  may  with  im- 
punity proceed  in  their  customary  labors.  And  if  they 
find  any  hired  laborers  who  presume  to  cease  from 
working  on  particular  feasts  that  are  not  above  enjoined, 
in  order  to  defraud  those  to  whose  service  they  have 
bound  themselves,  let  them  canonically  restrain  them 
from  such  superstitions  and  cause  others  to  restrain  them 
by  ecclesiastical  censures.  And  we  command  our  breth- 
ren aforesaid,  that  every  one  of  them  do  clearly  and 
distinctly  certify  us  by  their  letters  patent  (containing 
a  copy  of  these  presents)  what  they  have  done  in  the 
premises,  before  the  feast  of  the  Nativity  of  St.  Mary 
the  Virgin,  next  coming  ;  and  do  ye  also  take  care  to 
effectually  perform  all  and  singular  the  premises,  so  far 
as  they  concern  your  cities  and  diocese,  and  in  the 
same  manner  to  certify  it  to  us. 


Stmday  Laws  in  England,  89 

Dated  at  Maghfield,  17  cal.  August,  a.  d.  1362,  and 
of  our  consecration  the  thirteenth. 

"Laws  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England, 
from  its  Foundation  to  Henry  VIII,"  John- 
son, vol.  ii,  pp.  425-428.  Also,  Spelman, 
"Works,"  p.  609;  also,  Wilkins,  "Concilia," 
vol.  ii,  p.  560. 

About  the  year  1367,  John  Thorsby,  Arch- 
bishop of  York,  gave  a  similar  charge  to  his  sub- 
ordinates.    It  runs  as  follows  : 

Desiring,  therefore,  to  obviate  some  errors  and  abuses 
so  far  as  we  can,  which  we  see  to  grow  rife  in  the  Church  : 
in  the  first  place  (according  to  the  example  of  Christ, 
who  would  have  his  own  church  be  called  a  house,  not 
of  merchandise,  but  of  prayer  ;  and  not  allowing  fraudu- 
lent traffic  there  to  be  exercised,  cast  the  buyers  and 
sellers  out  of  the  temple),  we  firmly  forbid  any  one  to 
keep  a  market  in  the  churches,  the  porches,  and  ceme- 
teries thereunto  belonging,  or  other  holy  places  of  our 
diocese,  on  the  Lord's  day  or  other  festivals,  or  to  pre- 
sume to  traffic  or  hold  any  secular  pleas  therein ;  and 
let  there  be  no  wrestlings,  shootings,  or  plays  which  may 
be  the  cause  or  occasion  of  sin,  dissension,  hatred,  or 
fighting,  therein  performed  ;  but  let  every  Catholic  come 
thither  to  pray,  and  to  implore  pardon  for  his  sin. 

Johnson,  as  above,  vol.  ii,  p.  431,  and  Wilkins, 
vol.  iii,  p.  d'^. 

A  similar  law  had  been  enacted  by  Edward  I 
(thirteenth  ed.,  statute  2)  in  1285  A.  D.,  in  which 
it  was   ordered,  "  that  from   henceforth  neither 


90  Sunday  Legislation. 

fairs   nor  markets  be  kept   in  church-yards,  for 
the  honor  of  the  Church." 

In  1409  A.  D.,  Henry  IV  ordered  the  following: 

He  that  playeth  at  unlawful  games  on  Sundays  and 
other  festival  days  prohibited  by  the  statute,  shall  be  six 
days  imprisoned.     (Statute  11.) 

The  27th  statute  of  Henry  VI,  enacted  in  1448 
A.  D.,  is  in  these  words : 

Item,  considering  the  abominable  iniquities  and  of- 
fenses done  to  Almighty  God  and  to  his  saints,  always 
aiders  and  singular  assisters  in  our  necessities,  because 
of  fairs  and  markets  upon  their  high  and  principal 
feasts,  as  in  the  feast  of  the  Ascension  of  our  Lord,  in 
the  day  of  Corpus  Christi,  in  the  day  of  Whitsunday,  in 
Trinity  Sunday,  with  other  Sundays,  and  also  in  the  high 
feast  of  the  Assumption  of  our  Blessed  Lady,  the  day  of 
All  Saints,  and  on  Good  Friday,  accustomably  and  mis- 
erably holden  and  used  in  the  realm  of  England  :  in 
which  principal  and  festival  days  for  great  earthly  covet- 
ise,  the  people  is  more  willingly  vexed,  and  in  bodily 
labor  foiled,  than  in  other  ferial  days,  as  in  fastening  and 
making  their  booths  and  stalls,  bearing  and  carrying, 
lifting  and  placing  their  wares  outward  and  homeward, 
as  though  they  did  nothing  remember  the  horrible  defil- 
ing of  their  souls  in  buying  and  selling,  with  many  de- 
ceitful lies  and  false  perjury,  with  drunkenness  and 
strifes,  and  so  specially  withdrawing  themselves  and 
their  servants  from  divine  service;  the  aforesaid  lord  the 
king,  by  advice  and  assent  of  the  lords  spiritual  and 
temporal  and  the  commons  of  this  realm  of  England, 
being  in  the  said  Parliament,  and  by  authority  of  the 


Sunday  Laws  hi  England.  91 

same  Parliament,  hath  ordained  that  all  manner  of  fairs 
and  markets  in  the  said  principal  feasts  and  Sundays 
and  Good  Fridays,  shall  clearly  cease  from  all  showing 
of  any  goods  and  merchandises  (necessary  victual  only 
excepted)  upon  pain  of  forfeiture  of  all  the  goods  afore- 
said so  showed,  to  the  lord  of  the  franchise  or  liberty 
where  such  goods,  contrary  to  this  ordinance  be  or  shall 
be  showed  (the  four  Sundays  in  harvest  excepted). 
Nevertheless  of  his  special  grace,  by  authority  aforesaid, 
granteth  to  them  power  which  of  old  time  had  no  day  to 
hold  their  fair  or  market,  but  only  upon  the  festival  days 
aforesaid,  to  hold  by  the  same  authority  and  strength  of 
his  old  grant,  within  three  days  next  before  the  said 
feasts,  or  next  after,  proclamation  first  made  to  the  sim- 
ple common  people,  upon  which  day  the  aforesaid  fair 
shall  be  holden,  always  to  be  certified,  without  any  fine 
or  fee  to  be  taken  to  the  king's  use.  And  they  which  of 
old  time  have,  by  special  grant,  sufficient  days  before 
the  feasts  aforesaid,  or  after,  shall  in  like  manner,  as 
aforesaid,  hold  their  fairs  and  markets  the  full  number 
of  their  days,  the  said  festival  days  and  Sundays  and 
Good  Fridays  excepted. 

"  Statutes  Relating  to  the  Ecclesiastical  and  Elee- 
mosynary Institutes  of  England,"  by  Archi- 
bald John  Stehhens,  vol.  i,  p.  no,  scq.  Also, 
''Rev.  Statutes,"  1235-1685  a.  d.,  pp.  347- 
349,  London,  1870. 

In  1464  A.  D.,  under  Edward  IV,  an  addition 
was  made  to  the  act  of  Henry  VI,  of  1448  A.  D., 
declaring  that — 

Cobblers  and  cordwainers  in  the  city  of  London,  or 
within  three  miles  thereof,  excepting  within  the  precincts 


92  Sunday  Legislation. 

of  St.  Martins-le-Grand  and  the  palace  at  Westminster, 
were  forbidden  on  any  Sunday  in  the  year,  or  on  the 
feasts  of  the  Nativity  or  Ascension  of  our  Lord,  or  on 
the  feast  of  Corpus  Christi,  to  command  or  cause  to  be 
sold,  or  place  or  put  on  any  one's  feet  or  legs,  any  shoes, 
hose,  or  galoches,  under  the  penalty  of  the  forfeiture  of 
the  article  and  a  fine  of  twenty  shillings  for  every  of- 
fense ;  a  third  part  to  go  to  the  king,  a  third  to  the  gov- 
fernors  of  the  guild  (mestier)  of  cordwains,  and  the  resi- 
due to  the  informer. 

Neale,  "  Feasts  and  Fasts,"  p.  124.    Also,  Statutes 
of  the  4th  of  Edward  IV,  chap.  vii. 

In  1523  this  act  was  repealed  by  Henry  VlIL 
(15th  Henry  VIII,  chap,  ix.) 


Injunctions  of  Edward  VI. 

On  coming  to  the  throne  in  1547,  Edward  VI 
issued  numerous  "  injunctions  "  concerning  relig- 
ious matters.     Among  them  the  following  : 

Also,  Like  as  the  people  be  commonly  occupied  the 
work-day  with  bodily  labor,  for  their  bodily  sustenance, 
so  was  the  holy  day  at  first  beginning,  godly  instituted 
and  ordained,  that  the  people  should  that  day  give  them- 
selves wholly  to  God ;  and  whereas  in  our  time,  God  is 
more  offended  than  pleased,  more  dishonored  than 
honored,  upon  the  holy  day,  because  of  idleness,  pride, 
drunkenness,  quarreling,  and  brawling,  which  are  most 
used  in  such  days  ;  people  nevertheless  persuading  them- 
selves sufficiently  to  honor  God  on  that  day  if  they  hear 
mass  and  service,  though  they  understand  nothing  to  their 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  93 

edifying ;  therefore  all  the  king's  faithful  and  loving  sub- 
jects shall  from  henceforth  celebrate  and  keep  their  holy 
day  according  to  God's  holy  will  and  pleasure,  that  is  in 
hearing  the  Word  of  God  read  and  taught,  in  private 
and  public  prayers,  in  acknowledging  their  offenses  to 
God,  and  amendment  of  the  same,  in  reconciling  their- 
selves  charitably  to  their  neighbors,  where  displeasure 
hath  been,  in  oftentimes  receiving  the  communion  of  the 
very  body  and  blood  of  Christ,  in  visiting  the  poor  and 
sick,  and  in  using  all  soberness  and  godly  conversation. 
Yet  notwithstanding,  all  parsons,  vicars,  and  curates 
shall  teach  and  declare  unto  their  parishioners,  that  they 
may,  with  a  safe  and  quiet  conscience,  in  the  time  of 
harvest,  labor  upon  the  holy  and  festival  days,  and  save 
that  thing  which  God  hath  sent;  and  if,  for  any  scrupu- 
losity or  grudge  of  conscience,  men  should  superstitious- 
ly  abstain  from  working  upon  those  days,  that  then  they 
should  grievously  offend  and  displease  God. 

Wilkin s,  ''Concilia  Magnse  Britanniae  et  Hiber- 
niae,"  vol.  iv,  p.  6.     Folio,  London,  1737. 

In  1552,  under  Edward  VI,  we  find  the  follow- 
ing, under  the  title,  "  An  act  for  the  keeping  holy 
days  and  fasting  days."  (Statutes  of  the  5th  and 
6th  of  Edward  VI,  chap,  iii) : 

Forasmuch  as  at  all  times  men  be  not  so  mindful  to 
laud  and  praise  God,  so  ready  to  resort  and  hear  God's 
holy  word,  and  to  come  to  the  holy  communion  and 
other  laudable  rites,  which  are  to  be  observed  in  every 
Christian  congregation,  as  their  bounden  duty  doth  re- 
quire ;  therefore,  to  call  men  to  remembrance  of  their 
duty,  and  to  help  their  infirmity,  it  hath  been  whole- 


94  Sunday  Legislation. 

somely  provided,  that  there  should  be  some  certain  times 
and  days  appointed  wherein  the  Christians  should  cease 
from  all  other  kind  of  labors,  and  should  apply  them- 
selves only  and  wholly  unto  the  aforesaid  holy  works, 
properly  pertaining  unto  true  religion,  that  is  to  hear,  to 
learn,  and  to  remember  Almighty  God's  great  benefits, 
his  manifold  mercies,  his  inestimable  gracious  goodness, 
so  plenteously  poured  upon  all  his  creatures,  and  that  of 
his  infinite  and  unspeakable  goodness,  without  any  man's 
desert ;  and  in  remembrance  hereof,  to  render  unto  him 
most  high  and  hearty  thanks  with  prayers  and  supplica- 
tions for  the  relief  of  all  our  daily  necessities  ;  and  be- 
cause these  be  chief  and  principal  works  wherein  man  is 
commanded  to  worship  God,  and  to  properly  pertain 
unto  the  first  table :  therefore,  as  these  works  are  most 
commonly,  and  also  may  well  be  called  God's  service,  so 
the  times  appointed  specially  for  the  same  are  called 
holy  days  ;  not  for  the  matter  and  nature  either  of  the 
time  or  day,  nor  for  any  of  the  saints'  sake,  whose  mem- 
ories are  had  on  these  days  (for  so  all  days  and  times 
considered  are  God's  creatures,  all  of  like  holiness),  but 
for  the  nature  and  condition  of  those  godly  and  holy 
works,  wherewith  only  God  is  to  be  honored,  and  the  con- 
gregation to  be  edified,  whereunto  such  times  and  days 
are  sanctified  and  hallowed ;  this  is  to  say,  separated 
from  all  profane  use,  and  dedicated  and  appointed,  not 
unto  any  saint  or  creature,  but  only  unto  God  and  his 
true  worship ;  neither  is  it  to  be  thought  that  there  is 
any  certain  time  or  definite  number  of  days  prescribed 
in  Holy  Scripture,  but  that  the  appointment  both  of  the 
time  and  also  of  the  number  of  the  days  is  left,  by  the 
authority  of  God's  Word,  to  the  liberty  of  Christ's 
Church,  to  be  determined  and  assigned  orderly  in  every 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  95 

country,  by  the  discretion  of  the  rulers  and  ministers 
thereof,  as  they  shall  judge  most  expedient  to  the  true 
setting  forth  of  God's  glory,  and  the  edification  of  their 
people ;  be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the  king,  our  sover- 
eign lord,  with  the  assent  of  the  lords  spiritual  and  tem- 
poral, and  the  commons  in  this  present  Parliament  as- 
sembled, and  by  the  authority  of  the  same,  that  all  the 
days  hereafter  mentioned,  shall  be  kept  and  commanded 
to  be  kept  holy  days,  and  none  other  ;  that  is  to  say,  all 
Sundays  in  the  year,  the  days  of  the  feast  of  the  Cir- 
cumcision of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  of  the  Epiphany,  of 
the  Purification  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  of  Saint  Matthie 
the  Apostle,  of  the  Annunciation  of  the  Blessed  Virgin, 
of  St.  Mark  the  Evangelist,  of  St.  Philip  and  Jacob  the 
Apostles,  of  the  Ascension  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  of 
the  Nativity  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  of  St.  Peter  the 
Apostle,  of  St.  Jarnes  the  Apostle,  of  St.  Bartholomew 
the  Apostle,  of  St.  Matthew  the  Apostle,  of  St.  Michael 
the  Archangel,  of  St.  Luke  the  Evangelist,  of  St.  Simon 
and  Jude  the  Apostles,  of  All  Saints ;  of  St.  Andrew  the 
Apostle,  of  St.  Thomas  the  Apostle,  of  the  Nativity  of 
our  Lord,  of  St.  Stephen  the  Martyr,  of  St.  John  the 
Evangelist,  of  the  Holy  Innocents,  Monday  and  Tues- 
day in  Easter  week,  and  Monday  and  Tuesday  in  Whit- 
sun  week ;  and  that  none  other  day  shall  be  kept  and 
commanded  to  be  kept  holy  day,  or  to  abstain  from 
lawful  bodily  labor. 

II.  And  it  is  also  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
that  every  even,  or  day  next  going  before,  any  of  the 
aforesaid  days  of  the  feasts  of  the  Nativity  of  our  Lord, 
of  Easter,  of  the  Ascension  of  our  Lord,  Pentecost,  and 
the  Purification  and  Annunciation  of  the  aforesaid 
Blessed  Virgin,  of  All  Saints,  and  of  all  the  said  feasts 


g6  Sunday  Legislation, 

of  the  apostles  (other  than  of  St.  John  the  Evangeh'st, 
and  Philip  and  Jacob),  shall  be  fasted,  and  commanded 
to  be  kept  and  observed,  and  that  none  other  even  or 
day  shall  be  commanded  to  be  fasted. 

III.  And  it  is  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid 
that  it  shall  be  lawful  to  all  archbishops  and  bishops  in 
their  dioceses,  and  to  all  other  having  ecclesiastical  or 
spiritual  jurisdiction,  to  inquire  of  every  person  that 
shall  offend  in  the  premises,  and  to  punish  every  such 
oifender  by  the  censures  of  the  Church,  and  to  enjoin 
him  or  them  such  penance  as  shall  be  to  the  spiritual 
judge  by  his  direction  thought  meet  and  convenient. 

IV.  Provided,  always,  that  this  act,  or  anything 
therein  contained,  shall  not  extend  to,  abrogate,  or  take 
away  the  abstinence  from  flesh  in  Lent,  or  on  Fridays 
and  Saturdays,  or  any  other  day  which  is  already  ap- 
pointed so  to  be  kept,  by  virtue  of  an  act  made  and  pro- 
vided in  the  third  year  of  the  reign  of  our  sovereign  lord 
the  king's  majesty  that  now  is,  saving  only  of  those  evens 
or  days  whereof  the  holy  day  next  following  is  abrogated 
by  this  statute  ;  anything  above  mentioned  to  the  con- 
trary in  any  wise  notwithstanding. 

V.  Provided  also,  and  be  it  enacted  by  the  authority 
aforesaid,  that  when  and  so  often  as  it  shall  chance  any 
of  the  said  feasts  (the  evens  whereof  be  by  this  statute 
commanded  to  be  observed  and  kept  fasting-day)  to  fall 
upon  the  Monday^  that  then  as  it  hath  always  heretofore 
been  accustomably  used,  so  hereafter,  the  Saturday  then 
next  going  before  any  such  feast  or  holy  day,  and  not  the 
Sunday^  shall  be  commanded  to  be  fasted  for  the  even 
of  any  such  feast  or  holy  day  ;  anything  in  this  statute 
before  mentioned  or  declared  to  the  contrary  in  any  wise 
notwithstanding. 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  97 

VI.  Provided  always,  and  it  is  enacted  by  the  au- 
thority aforesaid,  that  it  shall  be  lawful  to  every  hus- 
bandman, laborer,  fisherman,  and  to  all  and  every  other 
person  or  persons,  of  what  estate,  degree,  or  condition 
he  or  they  may  be,  upon  the  holy  days  aforesaid  ;  in  har- 
vest or  at  any  other  time  of  the  year  when  necessity  shall 
require,  to  labor,  ride,  fish,  or  work,  any  kind  of  work, 
at  their  free  wills  and  pleasure  ;  anything  in  this  act  to 
the  contrary  in  any  wise  notwithstanding. 

VII.  Provided  always,  and  be  it  enacted  by  the 
authority  aforesaid,  that  it  shall  be  lawful  to  the  knights 
of  the  right  honorable  order  of  the  Garter,  and  to  every 
of  them,  to  keep  and  celebrate  solemnly  the  feast  of 
their  order,  commonly  called  St,  George's  feast,  yearly 
from  henceforth,  the  2 2d,  23d,  and  24th  days  of  April, 
and  at  such  other  time  and  times  as  yearly  shall  be 
thought  convenient  by  the  king's  highness,  his  heirs  and 
successors,  and  the  said  knights  of  the  said  honorable 
order,  or  any  of  them,  now  being,  or  hereafter  to  be; 
anything  in  this  act  heretofore  mentioned  to  the  contrary 
notwithstanding. 

"Revised  Statutes,"  from  1235-1685  a.  d.,  pp. 
555-557,  London,  1870.  Also,  "British  Stat- 
utes at  Large,"  vol.  ii,  p.  425,  London,  1786. 

The  above  law  was  repealed  the  next  year  un- 
der Queen  Mary. 

The  influence  of  the  Reformation  gradually  af- 
fected legislation  concerning  Sunday  and  its  as- 
sociate holidays.  Conservatism  held  sway  during 
the  time  of  Elizabeth.  Neale  speaks  of  her  reign 
as  follows : 


98  Sunday  Legislation, 

A  middle  course  seems  to  have  been,  in  all  ecclesias- 
tical matters,  peculiarly  characteristic  of  the  reign  of 
Elizabeth.  If  circumstances,  or  conviction,  or  both, 
carried  her  away  from  the  ancient  belief,  she  was  not 
less  disinclined  to  all  that  approached  the  views  of  the 
Calvinistic  reformers ;  that  seed  which  in  due  time 
ripened  among  us  into  Puritanism.  The  act  of  Edward, 
by  which  the  number  of  festivals  whereof  the  observance 
was  enjoined,  was  so  materially  curtailed,  remained  re- 
pealed throughout  her  reign  as  Mary  had  left  it;  and  an 
act  passed  soon  after  her  accession  places  the  observance 
of  Sundays  and  other  holidays  on  the  same  footing. 
Nor  does  she  appear  to  have  been  inclined  to  enforce 
upon  those  days  any  strict  abstinence  from  labor  or 
secular  business.  Her  injunctions,  published  in  the  first 
year  of  her  reign,  repeat  the  already  cited  direction  of 
the  first  of  Edward  VI,  and  confine  their  prohibition 
against  the  selling  of  meat  or  drink,  to  the  same  time  as 
the  Cramner's  Visitation  Articles. 

Neale,  "  Feasts  and  Fasts,"  p.  187. 

An  incident  recorded  by  Wilkins  shows  that 
Elizabeth  lacked  much  of  adopting  the  Puritan 
theory  concerning  Sunday.  One  of  her  subjects, 
John  Seconton  Powlter,  having  "  fallen  into  de- 
cay," sought  to  raise  money  for  the  support  of  his 
family,  by  Sunday  sports,  which  from  their  nature 
drew  large  crowds  of  people.  Queen  Elizabeth 
granted  him  permission  as  follows : 

To  have  and  use  some  plays  and  games  at  or  uppon 
nync  severall  Sondaies,  for  his  better  relief,  comfort,  and 
sustentacion. 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  99 

These  games  were  archery  of  different  sorts, 
leaping,  wrestling,  throwing  the  sledge,  pitching 
the  bar,  and  other  similar  sports,  which  were 
popular,  especially  with  the  ruder  people.  These 
games  were  not  to  be  held  in  one  localit}^  for  more 
than  "  three  severall  Sondaies,"  at  a  time.  This 
was  in  1569.  (See  Wilkins,  "Concilia  Magnse 
Britanniae  et  Hiberniae,"  vol.  iv,  p.  255.) 

Previous  to  this  Elizabeth  had  put  forth  a  list 
of  injunctions,  which  had  an  air  of  regard  for 
Sunday,  but  which  really  placed  Sunday  on  the 
same  plane  with  other  Church  holida3's.  The  re- 
sult was,  that  although  the  spirit  of  Puritanism 
was  working  rapidly  in  certain  quarters,  the  prac- 
tical observance  of  Sunday  was  at  a  low  ebb.  The 
following  are  her  injunctions  touching  Sunday: 

Injunction  20.  Item,  all  the  queen's  faithful  and 
loving  subjects  shall,  from  henceforth  celebrate  and  keep 
their  holyday  according  to  God's  will  and  pleasure  ;  that 
is,  in  hearing  the  Word  of  God  read  and  taught,  in  pri- 
vate and  public  prayers,  in  acknowledging  their  offenses 
unto  God,  and  amendment  of  the  same,  in  reconciling 
themselves  charitably  to  their  neighbors  where  displeas- 
ure hath  been,  in  oftentimes  receiving  the  communion 
of  the  very  body  and  blood  of  Christ,  in  visiting  of  the 
poor  and  sick,  using  all  soberness  and  godly  conversation. 
Yet  notwithstanding,  all  parsons,  vicars,  and  curates 
shall  teach  and  declare  unto  their  parishioners,  that  they 
may  with  a  safe  and  quiet  conscience,  after  their  common 
prayer  in  the  time  of  harvest,  labor  upon  the  holy  and 
festival  days,  and  save  that  thing  which  God  hath  sent ; 


loo  Sunday  Legislation, 

and  if  for  any  scrupulosity  or  grudge  of  conscience,  men 
should  superstitiously  abstain  from  working  upon  those 
days,  then  they  should  grievously  offend  and  displease 
God.  .  .  . 

Injunction  2,Z'  Item,  that  no  person  shall,  neglecting 
their  own  parish  church,  resort  to  any  other  church  in 
time  of  common  prayer  or  preaching,  except  it  be  by  the 
occasion  of  some  extraordinary  sermon  in  some  parish  of 
the  same  town.  .  .  . 

Injunction  46.  Item,  that  in  every  parish  three  or 
four  discrete  men,  which  tender  God's  glory,  and  his 
true  religion,  shall  be  appointed  by  the  ordinaries  dili- 
gently to  see,  that  all  the  parishioners  duly  resort  to  their 
church  upon  all  Sundays  and  holy  days,  and  there  to 
continue  the  whole  time  of  the  godly  service  ;  and  all 
such  as  shall  be  found  slack  and  negligent  in  resorting  to 
the  church,  having  no  great  or  urgent  cause  of  absence, 
they  shall  straightly  call  upon  them,  and  after  due  ad- 
monition if  they  amend  not,  they  shall  denounce  them 
to  the  ordinary. 

Wilkins,   "  Concilia  Magnse  Britannias,"  etc.,  vol. 
iv,  pp.  184,  186. 

The  growth  of  Puritanism,  and  its  effect  on  the 
general  thought  appears  in  the  legislation  under 
Charles  I.     A  law  enacted  in  1625  runs  as  follows: 

Forasmuch  as  there  is  nothing  more  acceptable  to 
God  than  the  true  and  sincere  service  and  worship  of 
him  according  to  his  holy  will,  and  that  the  holy  keeping 
of  the  Lord's  day  is  a  principal  part  of  the  true  service 
of  God,  which  in  very  many  places  of  this  realm  hath 
been,  and  now  is,  profaned  and  neglected  by  a  disorderly 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  loi 

sort  of  people,  in  exercising  and  frequenting  bear-bait- 
ing, bull-baiting,  interludes,  common  plays,  and  other 
unlawful  exercises  and  pastimes  upon  the  Lord's  day; 
and  for  that  many  quarrels,  bloodsheds,  and  other  great 
inconveniences  have  grown  by  the  resort  and  concourse 
of  people  going  out  of  their  own  parishes  to  such  disor- 
derly and  unlawful  exercises  and  pastimes,  neglecting 
divine  service,  both  in  their  own  parishes  and  elsewhere  ; 
be  it  enacted  by  the  king's  most  excellent  majesty,  the 
lords  spiritual  and  temporal,  and  the  commons,  in  this 
present  Parliament  assembled,  and  by  the  authority 
of  the  same,  that  from  and  after  forty  days  next  after 
the  end  of  this  Parliament,  there  shall  be  no  meetings, 
assemblies,  or  concourse  of  people  out  of  their  own 
parishes^  on  the  Lord's  day,  within  this  realm  of  Eng- 
land or  any  the  dominions  thereof,  for  any  sports 
and  pastimes,  whatsoever ;  nor  any  bear-baitings  bull- 
baiting,  interludes,  common  plays,  or  other  unlawful 
plays  and  pastimes,  used  by  any  person  or  persons 
in  their  own  parishes  ;  and  that  any  person  or  persons 
offending  in  the  premises,  shall  forfeit  for  every  of- 
fense three  shillings  four  pence,  the  same  to  be  employed 
and  converted  to  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  parish  where 
the  offense  shall  be  committed;  and  that  any  one  justice 
of  the  peace  of  the  county,  or  the  chief  officer  or  officers 
of  any  city,  borough,  or  town  corporate,  where  such  of- 
fense shall  be  committed,  upon  his  or  their  view,  or  con- 
fession of  the  party,  or  proof  of  any  one  or  more  witness 
by  oath,  which  the  said  justice  or  chief  officer  or  officers 
shall  by  virtue  of  this  act  have  authority  to  minister, 
shall  find  any  person  offending  in  the  premises,  the  said 
justice  or  chief  officer  or  officers  shall  give  warrant  under 
his  or  their  hand  and  seal,  to  the  constables  or  church- 


I02  Sunday  Legislation, 

wardens  of  the  parish  or  parishes  where  such  offense  shall 
be  committed,  to  levy  the  said  penalty  so  to  be  assessed, 
by  way  of  distress  and  sale  of  the  goods  of  every  such 
offender,  rendering  to  the  said  offender  the  overplus  of 
the  money  raised  of  the  said  goods  so  to  be  sold ;  and  in 
default  of  such  distress,  that  the  party  thus  offending  be 
set  publicly  in  the  stocks  by  the  space  of  three  hours ; 
and  that  if  any  man  be  sued  or  impeached  for  execution 
of  this  law,  he  shall  and  may  plead  the  general  issue,  and 
give  the  said  matter  of  justification  in  evidence  ;  pro- 
vided that  no  man  be  impeached  by  this  act  except  he 
be  called  in  question  v/ithin  one  month  next  after  the 
said  offense  committed;  provided  also,  that  the  ecclesi- 
astical jurisdiction  within  this  realm,  or  any  dominion 
thereof,  by  virtue  of  this  act  or  anything  therein  con- 
tained shall  not  be  abridged,  but  that  the  ecclesiastical 
court  may  punish  the  said  offenses  as  if  this  act  had 
not  been  made.  This  act  to  continue  until  the  end  of 
the  first  session  of  the  next  Parliament,  and  no  longer. 
Statutes  of  Charles  I,  chap.  i.  "  Revised  Stat- 
utes," from  1 235-1685  A.  D.,  p.  710,  London, 
1870.  Also,  "British  Statutes  at  Large," 
vol.  iii,  p.  119,  London,  1786. 

Meanwhile,  the  Puritan  element  was  rapidly 
gaining-  influence,  and  attempts  were  made  to 
bring  about  an  observance  of  Sunday,  which  was 
deemed  hyper-strict  by  the  majority  of  the  Eng- 
lish people.  To  counteract  this  tendency,  and  to 
cater  to  the  tastes  of  the  people  at  large,  Charles 
I  republished  the  famous  "  Book  of  Sports,"  which 
was  first  published  by  his  father,  James  I,  in  161 8. 
Its  appearance  at  that  time  had  contributed  much 


Sunday  Laws  in  England.  103 

to  the  influences  which  drove  the  Pilgrims  to  Hol- 
land, and  finally  to  America.  The  command  of 
James  that  it  be  read  in  the  churches,  on  specified 
occasions,  was  not  long  complied  with  and  it  had 
fallen  out  of  the  public  mind  somewhat,  when 
Charles  I  called  it  up  in  1633.  The  following  is 
the  complete  official  text : 

The  King's  Majesty's   Declaration  to  his  Subjects 
Concerning  Lawful  Sports  to  be  used. 
By  the  King. 

Our  dear  father  of  blessed  memory  in  his  return 
from  Scotland,  coming  through  Lancashire,  found  that 
his  subjects  were  debarred  from  lawful  recreations  upon 
Sundays  after  evening  prayers  ended,  and  upon  holy 
days  ;  and  he  prudently  considered  that  if  these  times 
were  taken  from  them,  the  meaner  sort,  who  labour  hard 
all  the  week,  should  have  no  recreations  at  all  to  re- 
fresh their  spirits.  And  after  his  return  he  further  saw 
that  his  loyal  subjects  in  all  other  parts  of  the  kingdom 
did  suffer  in  the  same  kind,  though,  perhaps,  not  in  the 
same  degree,  and  did,  therefore,  in  his  princely  wisdom 
publish  a  declaration  to  his  loving  subjects  concerning 
lawful  sports  to  be  used  at  such  times,  which  \vas  printed 
and  published  by  his  royal  commandment  in  the  year 
16 18,  in  the  tenor  which  hereafter  followeth. 
By  the  King. 

Whereas,  upon  our  return  the  last  year  out  of  Scot- 
land, we  did  publish  our  pleasure  touching  the  recrea- 
tions of  our  people  in  those  parts  under  our  hand ;  for 
some  causes  us  thereunto  moving,  we  have  thought  good 
to  command  these,  our  directions  then  given  in  Lan- 


I04  Sunday  Legislation.    • 

cashire,  with  a  few  words  thereunto  added,  and  most 
applicable  to  those  parts  of  the  realms,  to  be  published 
to  all  our  subjects. 

Whereas,  we  did  justly  in  our  progress  through 
Lancashire,  rebuke  some  Puritans  and  precise  people, 
and  took  order  that  the  like  unlawful  carriage  should 
not  be  used  by  any  of  them  hereafter  in  the  prohibiting 
and  unlawful  punishing  of  our  good  people  for  using 
their  lawful  recreations  and  honest  exercises  upon  Sun- 
days and  other  holy  days  after  the  afternoon  sermon  or 
service  ;  we  now  find  that  two  sorts  of  people,  wherewith 
the  country  is  much  infected  (we  mean  Papists  and  Puri- 
tans), have  maliciously  traduced  and  calumniated  our 
just  and  honorable  proceedings,  and,  therefore,  lest  our 
reputation  might  upon  the  one  side,  though  innocently, 
have  some  aspersion  laid  upon  it,  and  that  upon  the  other 
part,  our  good  people  in  that  country  be  misled  by  the 
mistaking  and  misrepresentation  of  our  meaning — we 
have  therefore  thought  good  hereby  to  clear  and  make 
our  pleasure  to  be  manifested  to  all  our  good  people  in 
those  parts. 

It  is  true  that  at  our  first  entry  to  this  crown  and 
kingdom  we  were  informed,  and  that  too  truly,  that  our 
county  in  Lancashire  abounded  more  in  popish  recu- 
sants than  any  county  of  England  ;  and  hath  still  con- 
tinued, to  our  great  regret,  with  little  amendment  save 
that  now  of  late,  in  our  last  riding  through  our  said 
county,  we  find,  both  by  the  report  of  the  judges  and 
of  the  bishop  of  the  diocese,  that  there  is  some  amend- 
ment now  daily  beginning,  which  is  no  small  content- 
ment to  us. 

The  report  of  this  growing  amendment  among  them 
made  us  the  more  sorry,  when,  with  our  own  ears,  we  had 


Sunday  Laws  in  Eiigland,  105 

heard  the  general  complaint  of  our  people,  that  they  were 
barred  from  all  lawful  recreation  and  exercise  upon  the 
Sunday  afternoon  after  the  ending  of  all  divine  service, 
which  can  not  but  produce  two  evils  ;  the  one  hindering 
of  the  conversion  of  many,  whom  their  priests  will  take 
occasion  hereby  to  vex,  persuading  them  that  no  honest 
mirth  or  recreation  is  lawful  on  those  days,  which  can 
not  but  breed  a  great  discontent  in  our  people's  hearts, 
especially  of  such  as  are  peradventure  upon  the  point 
of  turning  ;  the  other  inconvenience  is,  that  this  prohibi- 
tion (bareth)  the  common  and  meaner  sort  of  people 
from  using  such  exercises  as  may  make  their  bodies  more 
able  for  war,  v/henever  we  or  our  successors  shall  have 
occasion  to  use  them  ;  and  in  place  thereof,  set  up  filthy 
tipplings  and  drunkenness,  and  breeds  a  number  of  idle 
and  discontented  speeches  in  their  alehouses.  For 
when  shall  the  common  people  have  leave  to  exercises  if 
not  upon  Sundays  and  holy  days,  seeing  they  must  live 
by  their  labor,  and  win  their  living  in  all  v/orking  days. 
Our  express  pleasure,  therefore,  is  that  the  laws  of 
our  kingdom  and  canons  of  our  Church  be  as  well  ob- 
served in  that  county  as  in  all  other  places  of  this  our 
kingdom.  And  on  the  other  part,  that  no  lawful  recre- 
ations shall  be  barred  to  our  good  people,  which  shall 
not  tend  to  the  breach  of  our  aforesaid  laws,  and  canons 
of  our  Church,  which,  to  express  more  particularly  our 
pleasure,  is  that  the  bishops  and  all  other  inferior  clergy- 
men and  church-wardens  shall  for  their  parts  be  careful 
and  diligent  both  to  instruct  the  ignorant,  and  convince 
and  reform  them  that  are  misled  in  religion,  presenting 
them  that  will  not  conform  themselves,  but  obstinately 
stand  out,  to  our  judges  and  justices;  whom  we  likewise 
command  to  put  the  laws  in  due  execution  against  them. 


io6  Sunday  Legislation, 

Our  pleasure,  likewise,  is  that  the  bishop  of  the  diocese 
take  the  like  strait  order  with  all  the  Puritans  and  pre- 
cisians within  the  same,  either  constraining  them  to  con- 
form themselves,  or  leave  the  county,  according  to  the 
laws  of  our  kingdom,  and  canon  of  our  Church,  and  so 
to  strike  equally  on  both  hands  against  the  contemners 
of  our  authority  and  adversaries  of  our  Church.  And 
as  for  our  good  people's  lawful  recreation,  our  pleasure 
likewise  is,  that  after  the  end  of  divine  service  our  good 
people  be  not  disturbed,  letted,  or  discouraged  from  any 
lawful  recreation,  such  as  dancing,  either  men  or  women, 
archery  for  men,  leaping,  vaulting,  or  any  other  such 
harmless  recreation,  or  from  having  May  games,  Whitson- 
ales,  and  morris  dances,  and  the  setting  up  of  May  poles 
and  other  sports  therewith  used,  so  as  the  same  be  had 
in  due  and  convenient  time  without  impediment  or  neg- 
lect of  divine  service  ;  and  that  women  shall  have  leave 
to  carry  rushes  to  church  for  the  decorating  of  it,  ac- 
cording to  their  old  custom.  But  withal  we  do  here  ac- 
count still  as  prohibited  all  unlawful  games  to  be  used 
on  Sundays,  only  as  bear  and  bull  baitings,  interludes, 
and  at  all  times  in  the  meaner  sort  of  people  by  law 
prohibited  bowling. 

And  likewise  we  bar  from  the  benefit  and  liberty  all 
such  known  recusants,  either  men  or  women,  as  will  ab- 
stain from  coming  to  church  or  divine  service,  being 
therefore  unworthy  of  any  lawful  recreation  after  said 
service,  that  will  not  first  come  to  church  and  serve  God. 
Prohibiting  in  like  sort  the  said  recreations  to  any  that, 
though  conform  in  religion,  are  not  present  in  the  church 
at  the  service  of  God,  before  their  going  to  the  said  rec- 
reations. 

Our  pleasure,  likewise  is,  that  they  to  whom  it  be- 


Su7tday  Laws  in  Englajid.  107 

longeth  in  office,  shall  present  and  punish  sharply  all 
such,  as  in  abuse  of  this  our  liberty  will  use  their  ex- 
ercises before  the  end  of  all  divine  services  for  that  day. 
And  we  likewise  straitly  command  that  every  person 
shall  resort  to  his  own  parish  church  to  hear  divine 
service,  and  each  parish  by  itself  to  use  the  said  recrea- 
tions after  divine  service.  Prohibiting  likewise  any 
offensive  weapons  to  be  carried  or  used  in  the  said 
times  of  recreations.  And  our  pleasure  is  that  this  our 
declaration  shall  be  published  by  order  from  the  bishop 
of  the  diocese  through  all  the  parish  churches,  and  that 
both  our  judges  of  our  circuits  and  our  justices  of  our 
peace  be  informed  thereof.  Given  at  our  mannor  of 
Greenwich,  the  24th  day  of  May,  in  the  sixteenth  year 
of  our  reign  in  England,  France,  and  Ireland,  and  of 
Scotland  the  51st. 

Now,  out  of  a  like  pious  care  for  the  service  of  God, 
and  for  suppressing  of  any  humors  that  oppose  truth, 
and  for  the  ease,  comfort,  and  recreation  of  our  well-de- 
serving people,  we  do  ratify  and  publish  this  our  blessed 
father's  declaration,  the  rather  because  of  late  in  some 
counties  of  our  kingdom  we  find,  that  under  pretense  of 
takirhg  away  abuses  there  hath  been  a  general  forbidding, 
not  only  of  ordinary  meetings,  but  of  the  feasts  of  the 
dedication  of  the  churches,  commonly  called  **  Wakes." 
Now,  our  express  will  and  pleasure  is,  that  the  feasts 
with  others  shall  be  observed,  and  that  our  justices 
of  the  peace  in  their  several  divisions  shall  look  to  it, 
both  that  all  disorders  there  may  be  prevented  or  pun- 
ished, and  that  all  neighborhood  and  freedom  with  man- 
like and  lawful  exercises  be  used.  And  we  further  com- 
mand the  justices  of  the  assizes  in  their  several  circuits 
to  see  that  no  man  do  trouble  or  molest  any  of  our  loyal 


io8  Sunday  Legislation, 

and  dutiful  people  in  or  for  their  lawful  recreations, 
having  first  done  their  duty  to  God,  and  continuing  in 
obedience  to  us  and  our  laws.  And  of  this  we  command 
all  our  judges,  justices  of  the  peace,  as  well  within  liber- 
ties as  without,  mayors,  bailiffs,  constables,  and  other 
officers,  to  take  notice  of  and  see  observed,  as  they 
tender  our  displeasure.  And  we  further  will  that  publi- 
cation of  this  our  command  be  made  by  order  from  the 
bishops  through  all  the  parish  churches  of  their  several 
dioceses  respectively. 

Given  at  our  palace  of  Westminster,  the  i8th  day  of 
October,  in  the  ninth  year  of  our  reign.  God  save  the 
King.     (1633  A.  D.) 

"Concilia  Magnse  Britanniae  et  Hiberniae,"  vol. 
iv,  pp.  483,  484,  London,  1737. 

The  act  of  the  29th  of  Charles  II,  chap,  vii, 
issued  in  1676,  was  the  law  of  the  American  colo- 
nies up  to  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  and  so  be- 
came the  basis  of  the  American  Sunday  laws.  It 
runs  as  follows : 

For  the  better  observation  and  keeping  holy  the 
Lord's  day,  commonly  called  Sunday :  be  it  enacted  by 
the  king's  most  excellent  majesty,  and  by  and  with  the 
advice  and  consent  of  the  lords,  spiritual  and  temporal, 
and  of  the  commons  in  this  present  Parliament  assem- 
bled, and  by  the  authority  of  the  same,  that  all  the  laws 
enacted  and  in  force  concerning  the  observation  of  the 
day,  and  repairing  to  the  church  thereon,  be  carefully  put 
in  execution ;  and  that  all  and  every  person  and  persons 
whatsoever  shall  upon  every  Lord's  day  apply  themselves 
to  the  observation  of  the  same,  by  exercising  themselves 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  109 

thereon  in  the  duties  of  piety  and  true  religion,  publicly 
and  privately  ;  and  that  no  tradesman,  artificer,  work- 
man, laborer,  or  other  person  whatsoever,  shall  do  or 
exercise  any  worldly  labor  or  business  or  work  of  their 
ordinary  callings  upon  the  Lord's  day,  or  any  part  there- 
of (works  of  necessity  and  charity  only  excepted),  and 
that  every  person  being  of  the  age  of  fourteen  years  or 
upwards  offending  in  the  premises  shall,  for  every  such 
offense,  forfeit  the  sum  of  five  shillings  ;  and  that  no 
person  or  persons  whatsoever  shall  publicly  cry,  show 
forth,  or  expose  for  sale  any  wares,  merchandise,  fruit, 
herbs,  goods,  or  chattels  whatsoever,  upon  the  Lord's 
day,  or  any  part  thereof,  upon  pain  that  every  person  so 
offending  shall  forfeit  the  same  goods  so  cried  or  showed 
forth  or  exposed  for  sale. 

2.  And  it  is  further  enacted  that  no  drover,  horse- 
courser,  wagoner,  butcher,  higgler — they  or  any  of  their 
servants  shall  travel  or  come  into  his  or  their  inn 
or  lodging  upon  the  Lord's  day,  or  any  part  thereof, 
upon  pain  that  each  and  every  such  offender  shall  forfeit 
twenty  shillings  for  every  such  offense ;  and  that  no  per- 
son or  persons  shall  use,  imploy,  or  travel  upon  the 
Lord's  day  with  any  boat,  wherry,  lighter,  or  barge,  ex- 
cept it  be  upon  extraordinary  occasion  to  be  allowed 
by  some  justice  of  the  peace  of  the  county,  or  some  head 
officer,  or  some  justice  of  the  peace  of  the  city,  borough, 
or  town  corporate,  where  the  fact  shall  be  committed, 
upon  pain  that  ever  person  so  offending  shall  forfeit  and 
lose  the  sum  of  five  shillings  for  every  such  offense. 

The  remainder  of  section  2  places  such  cases 
in  the  hands  of  ordinary  justices  of  the  peace, 
orders  the  confiscation  of  goods  cried  or  exposed, 


no  Sunday  Legislation, 

and  the  collection  of  fines  by  distraint  if  needful. 
In  case  the  offender  can  not  meet  the  penalties,  he 
shall  "  be  set  public  in  the  stocks  for  the  space  of 
two  hours." 

3.  Provided,  that  nothing  in  this  act  contained  shall 
extend  to  the  prohibiting  of  dressing  meats  in  families, 
or  dressing  or  selling  of  meat  in  inns,  cook-shops,  vict- 
ualing houses,  for  such  as  otherwise  can  not  be  provided, 
nor  to  the  crying  or  selling  of  milk  before  nine  of  the 
clock  in  the  morning,  or  after  four  of  the  clock  in  the 
afternoon. 

Sec.  4  requires  all  prosecution  to  be  made 
within  ten  days  of  the  offense. 

Sec.  5  protects  the  district  in  which  any  one 
traveling  on  Sunday  may  chance  to  be  robbed 
from  being  responsible  for  the  amount  lost,  but 
requires  the  people  to  make  diligent  effort  to  ap- 
prehend the  robber  after  *'  hue  and  cry  "  has  been 
made,  under  penalty  of  forfeiting  to  the  crown  the 
amount  which  might  have  been  recovered. 

Sec.  6.  Provided,  also,  that  no  person  or  persons 
upon  the  Lord's  day  shall  serve  or  execute,  or  cause  to  be 
served  or  executed,  any  writ,  process,  warrant,  order 
judgment,  or  decree  (except  in  case  of  treason,  felony,  or 
breach  of  the  peace),  but  that  the  service  of  every  such 
writ,  process,  warrant,  order,  judgment,  or  decree,  shall 
be  void  to  all  intents  and  purposes  whatever ;  and  the 
person  or  persons  so  serving  or  executing  the  same  shall 
be  as  liable  to  the  suit  of  the  party  grieved,  and  to  answer 
damages  to  him  for  the  doing  thereof,  as  if  he  or  they 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  iii 

had  done  the  same  without  any  writ,  process,  warrant, 

order,  judgment,  or  decree  at  all. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  England  from  1 235-1685 
A.  D.,"  pp.  779,  780,  London,  1870.  Also, 
**  British  Statutes  at  Large,"  vol.  iii,  p.  365, 
London,  1786. 

A  statute  of  the  7th  of  William  III,  chap,  xvii,  for 
Ireland,  1695,  forbade  general  work,  and  specified 
many  boisterous  games,  which  seem  to  have  been 
very  prevalent.     Traveling  was  also  forbidden. 

As  a  whole,  the  law  was  Puritanic,  and  yet 
contained  such  "  exceptions  "  as  made  it  easy  to 
do  what  one  might  wish. 

It  is  essentially  the  same  as  the  law  of  Charles 
II,  of  1676,  given  above.  It  restricted  the  sale  of 
liquor  at  taverns  and  gave  some  additional  power 
to  officers.  ("Irish  Statutes,"  vol.  iii,  p.  314;  see 
also  p.  286,  Dublin,  1765.) 

A  statute  of  the  9th  of  Anne,  chap,  xxiii,  17 10 
A.  D.,  virtually  repealed  all  former  acts  concerning 
coaches.     It  was  as  follows  : 

And  whereas,  by  an  act  of  Parliament  made  in  the 
29th  year  of  the  reign  of  King  Charles  II,  and  other  acts 
formerly  made  for  the  better  observation  of  the  Lord's 
day,  commonly  called  Sunday,  the  standing  to  hire  and 
driving  hackney-coaches,  and  the  standing  to  hire  and 
carrying  of  chairs,  on  the  Lord's  day,  are,  or  may  be 
understood  to  be,  forbidden  or  restrained  ;  and  whereas 
the  said  restraint  is  many  times  found  inconvenient,  as 
well  in  order  to  the  observation  of  the  day  as  otherwise  : 


1 1 2  Sunday  Legislation, 

Be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  that  it 
shall  and  may  be  lawful  to  and  for  any  licensed  hackney- 
coachman,  or  his  driver,  or  any  chairman,  to  ply  and 
stand  with  their  coaches  and  chairs,  and  to  drive  and 
carry  the  same,  respectively,  on  the  Lord's  day,  within 
the  limits  of  the  said  weekly  bills  of  mortality  ;  the  for- 
mer acts,  one  or  any  of  them,  or  any  construction  there- 
upon, to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

"  Statutes,"  etc.,  vol.  iv,  p.  476. 

A  statute  of  George  III,  1781  A.  D.,  entitled, 
"  An  act  for  preventing  certain  abuses  and  pro- 
fanations on  the  Lord's  day,  called  Sunday  "  (chap, 
xlix),  was  aimed  at  public  meetings  held  in  London 
on  Sunday  evening,  at  which,  "  under  pretense  of 
inquiring  into  religious  doctrines,  and  explaining 
texts  of  the  Holy  Scripture,  debates  have  fre- 
quently been  held  on  the  evening  of  the  Lord's 
day  concerning  divers  texts  of  Holy  Scripture 
by  persons  unlearned  and  incompetent  to  explain 
the  same,  to  the  corruption  of  good  morals,  and 
to  the  great  encouragement  of  irreligion  and  pro- 
laneness,"  etc. 

This  act  forbids  any  such  meeting  to  which 
people  were  admitted  for  mone}-,  or  by  tickets 
sold  for  money.  Presiding  officers,  ticket-vend- 
ers, etc.,  were  liable  to  arrest  and  a  fine  of  fifty 
pounds.  Also  the  persons  advertising  such  meet- 
ings were  liable  to  same  fine.  (*'  Statutes,"  etc., 
vol.  ix,  p.  163.) 

A  statute  of  George  III,  a.  d.  1794,  concerning 
bakers,  aimed  to  meet  the  custom  of  continuing 


Sunday  Laws  in  England,  113 

business  by  bakers,  under  plea  of  necessity  and 
charity. 

It  forbids  bakers  to  pursue  business  in  London, 
or  within  twelve  miles  thereof,  under  penalty  of 
ten  shillings.  The  second  clause  gives  the  follow- 
ing liberal  exception : 

Provided,  always,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall 
extend,  or  be  construed  to  extend,  to  prohibit  the  selling 
of  bread,  or  to  prohibit  or  make  liable  to  the  penalties  of 
this  act,  any  master  or  journeyman  baker,  or  other  per- 
son, baking  meat,  puddings,  or  pies,  only,  on  the  Lord's 
day  between  the  hours  of  nine  of  the  clock  in  the  fore- 
noon and  one  of  the  clock  in  the  afternoon,  so  as  the 
person  requiring  the  baking  thereof  shall  carry  or  send 
the  same  to  and  from  the  place  where  such  meat,  pud- 
ding, or  pies  is  baked. 

"Statutes,"  etc.,  vol.  xii,  p.  547. 

In  1 82 1,  under  George  IV,  the  foregoing  law 
concerning  bakers  was  amended  by  certain  addi- 
tions, but  not  materially  altered.  A  little  later  all 
acts  relative  to  bakers  in  and  about  London  were 
repealed,  and  a  general  law  was  enacted  forbid- 
ding baking  between  9  A.  M.  and  i  P.  M.  on  Sunday. 
This,  however,  granted  exceptions  in  favor  of  ne- 
cessary work  in  sponging  and  preparing  bread  for 
the  next  day's  baking.  The  first  offense  under 
this  law  was  made  punishable  by  a  fine  of  ten  shil- 
lings, the  second  by  twenty  shillings,  and  the  third 
and  all  succeeding  offenses  by  forty  shillings.  In 
all  cases  the  costs  were  to  be  paid  by  the  offender. 


114  Sunday  Legislation. 

Under  this  general  law,  the  delivery  of  bread  is 
permitted  until  half  past  i  P.  M.  (''  Statutes  of  the 
United  Kingdom,"  vol.  viii,  p.  364,  London,  1822.) 
We  have  thus  traced  the  English  laws  to  a 
point  considerably  later  than  the  date  of  those 
laws  which  gave  rise  to  the  laws  of  America. 
Several  enactments  relative  to  the  sale  of  intoxi- 
cating drinks  have  been  made  from  time  to  time 
in  the  British  Empire,  which  do  not  properly 
come  within  the  scope  of  these  pages.  Neither  is 
it  our  province  to  enter  into  a  discussion  of  the 
merits  of  these  different  enactments ;  it  is  rather 
our  aim  to  present  them  in  such  a  way  that  the 
reader  may  gain  all  necessary  and  definite  in- 
formation concerning  what  has  been  and  is  the 
prevailing  legislation  concerning  Sunday  in  Eng- 
land. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SUNDAY   LAWS  IN   ENGLAND  DURING  THE  PURITAN 
SUPREMACY. 

Tpie  legislation  which  was  peculiarly  Puri- 
tanic, in  England,  dates,  in  general,  from  1640  to 
1660  A.  D.  It  is  of  special  significance  to  Ameri- 
can readers,  since  it  indicates  high-water  mark  in 
the  tide  of  influences  which  developed  the  char- 
acter, and  gave  form  to  the  earlier  Sunday  legis- 
lation in  the  colonies  and  the  United  States.  It 
will  be  seen  that  these  laws  are  at  once  theologi- 
cal treatises  and  civil  enactments.  They  appear 
here  in  chronological  order,  and  will  repay  careful 
study,  in  spite  of  their  length  and  verbosity  : 

Forasmuch  as  the  Lord's-day,  notwithstanding  sev- 
eral good  laws  heretofore  made,  hath  been  not  onely 
greatly  prophaned,  but  divers  ungodly  Books  have  been 
published  by  the  Prelatical  Faction,  against  the  morality 
of  that  day,  and  to  countenance  the  prophanation  of  the 
same,  to  the  manifest  indangering  of  souls,  prejudice  of 
the  true  Religion,  great  dishonour  of  Almighty  God,  and 
provocation  of  his  just  wrath  and  indignation  against 
this  Land  I 

The  Lords  and  Commons  for  remedy   thereof,  do 


ii6  Stmday  Legislation, 

Order  and  Ordain,  and  be  it  Ordered  and  Ordained, 
That  all  the  Laws  Enacted  and  in  force,  concerning  the 
observation  of  the  Lord's  day,  be  caefully  put  in  execu- 
tion ;  and  that  all  and  singular  person  and  persons  what- 
soever, shall  on  every  Lord's  day,  apply  themselves  to 
the  sanctification  of  the  same,  by  exercising  themselves 
thereon,  in  the  duties  of  Piety  and  true  Religion,  pub- 
lickly  and  privately  :  And  that  no  person  or  persons 
whatsoever,  shall  publickly  cry,  shew  forth,  or  expose  to 
sale,  any  Wares,  Merchandizes,  Fruit,  Herbs,  Goods  or 
Chattels  whatsoever,  upon  the  Lord's  day,  or  any  part 
thereof;  upon  pain,  That  every  person  so  offending, 
shall  forfeit  the  same  Goods  so  cryed,  shewed  forth,  or 
put  to  sale  :  And  that  no  person  or  persons  whatsoever, 
shall,  without  reasonable  cause  for  the  same,  travel,  carry 
burthens,  or  do  any  worldly  labours,  or  work  whatsoever, 
upon  that  day,  or  any  part  thereof;  upon  pain,  That 
every  one  travelling  contrary  to  the  meaning  of  this  Or- 
dinance shall  forfeit  for  every  offence,  ten  shillings  of 
lawful  money  ;  and  that  every  person  carrying  any  bur- 
then, or  doing  any  worldly  labour  or  work,  contrary  to 
the  meaning  hereof,  shall  forfeit  five  shillings  of  like 
money  for  every  such  offence. 

And  be  it  further  Ordained,  That  no  person  or  per- 
sons shall  hereafter  upon  the  Lord's  day,  use,  exercise, 
keep,  maintain,  or  be  present  at  any  Wrastlings,  Shoot- 
ing, Bowling,  Ringing  of  Bells  for  Pleasure  or  Pastime, 
Masque,  Wake,  otherwise  called  Feasts,  Church-Ale, 
Dancing,  Games,  Sport  or  Pastime  whatsoever  ;  upon 
pain.  That  every  person  so  offending,  being  above  the 
age  of  fourteen  years,  shall  lose,  and  forfeit  five  shillings 
for  every  such  offense. 

And  be  it  further  Ordained,  That  all  and  singular 


During  the  Puritan  Supremacy,     117 

person  and  persons,  that  have  the  care,  government,  tu- 
ition or  education  of  any  childe  or  children,  under,  or 
within  the  age  of  fourteen  years,  shall  forfeit  and  lose 
twelve  pence  for  every  of  the  said  offenses  that  shall  be 
committed  by  any  such  childe  or  children. 

And  because  the  prophanation  of  the  Lord's  day  hath 
been  heretofore  greatly  occasioned  by  May-Poles,  (a 
Heathenish  vanity,  generally  abused  to  superstition  and 
wickedness.)  The  Lords  and  Commons  do  further  Or- 
der and  Ordain,  That  all  and  singular  May-poles,  that 
are  or  shall  be  erected,  shall  be  taken  down  and  re- 
moved by  the  Constables,  Borsholders,  Tythingmen, 
petty  Constables,  and  Church  wardens  of  the  parishes, 
and  places  where  the  same  be:  And  that  no  May- 
Pole  shall  be  hereafter  set  up,  erected,  or  suffered  to 
be  within  this  Kingdom  of  England,  or  Dominion  of 
Wales. 

And  it  is  further  Ordained,  That  if  any  of  the  said 
Officers  shall  neglect  to  do  their  Office  in  the  Premises, 
within  one  week  after  notice  of  this  Ordinance,  every  of 
them,  for  such  neglect,  shall  forfeit  five  shillings  of  law- 
full  Moneys  ;  and  so  from  week  to  week,  weekly  Five 
shillings  more  afterward,  till  the  said  May-Pole  shall  be 
taken  down,  and  removed. 

And  that  if  any  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  the  County, 
or  the  chief  Officer  or  Officers,  or  any  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  of,  or  within  any  City,  Borough  or  Town-Cor- 
porate, where  the  said  offenses  shall  be  committed,  upon 
his  or  their  view,  or  confession  of  the  party,  or  proof  of 
any  one  or  more  witnesses  by  Oath  (which  the  said 
Justice,  chief  Officer  or  Officers,  is  by  this  Ordinance 
auhorized  to  minister)  shall  find  any  person  offend- 
ing in  the  Premises,  the  said  Justice,  or  chief  Officer 


1 1 8  Sunday  Legislation. 

or  Officers,  shall  give  Warrant  under  his  or  their  hand 
and  Seal,  to  the  Constables  or  Churchwardens  of  the 
Parish  or  Parishes  where  such  offense  shall  be  com- 
mitted, to  seize  the  said  Goods,  cryed,  shewed  forth, 
or  put  to  sale  as  aforesaid;  and  to  levy  the  said 
other  Forfeitures  or  Penalties  by  way  of  Distress  and 
Sale  of  the  Goods  of  every  such  Offender,  rendring 
to  the  said  Offenders  the  overplus  of  the  money  raised 
thereby  ;  and  in  default  of  such  Distress,  or  in  case  of 
insufficiency,  or  inability  of  the  Offender  to  pay  the  said 
Forfeitures  or  Penalties,  That  the  party  offending  be 
set  publiquely  in  the  Stocks  by  the  space  of  three  hours : 
And  all  and  singular  the  forfeitures  or  Penalties  afore- 
said, shall  be  imployed  and  converted  to  the  use  of  the 
Poor  of  the  Parish  where  the  said  offenses  shall  be  com- 
mitted, saving  onely,  that  it  shall  and  may  be  lawfull,  to, 
and  for  such  Justice,  mayor,  or  Head  Officer  or  Officers, 
out  of  the  said  Forfeitures  or  Penalties,  to  reward  any 
person  or  persons  that  shall  inform  of  any  offense  against 
this  Ordinance,  according  to  their  discretions;  so  as 
such  reward  exceed  not  the  third  part  of  the  Forfeiture 
or  Penalties. 

And  it  is  further  Ordained  by  the  said  Lords  and 
Commons,  That  the  King's  Declaration  concerning  ob- 
serving of  Wakes,  and  use  of  exercise  and  recreation 
upon  the  Lord's-day;  the  Book  intitled,  The  Kings 
Majesty's  Declaration  to  his  Subjects,  concerning  lawful 
Sports  to  be  used  ;  and  all  other  Books  and  Pamphlets 
that  have  been,  or  shall  be  written,  Printed,  or  Pub- 
lished, against  the  Morality  of  the  fourth  Commandment, 
or  of  the  Lord's  day,  or  to  countenance  the  prophanation 
thereof,  be  called  in,  seized,  suppressed,  and  publiquely 
burnt  by  the  Justices  of  Peace,  or  some  or  one  of  them,  or 


During  the  Puritan  Supremacy,     1 1 9 

by  the  chief  Officer  or  Officers  aforesaid,  in  their  several 
limits,  or  by  their  warrant  or  command. 

Provided,  and  be  it  Declared,  That  nothing  in  this 
Ordinance  shall  extend  to  the  prohibiting  of  dressing 
meat  in  private  Families,  or  the  dressing  and  sale  of 
Victuals  in  a  moderate  way  in  Inns  or  Victualling- 
houses,  for  the  use  of  such  as  cannot  otherwise  be 
provided  for;  or  to  the  crying  or  selling  Milk  before 
Nine  of  the  Clock  in  the  Morning,  or  after  four  of  the 
Clock  in  the  Afternoon,  from  the  Tenth  of  September 
till  the  Tenth  of  March  ;  or  before  Eight  of  the  Clock 
in  the  Morning,  or  after  Five  of  the  Clock  in  the  After- 
noon, from  the  Tenth  of  March  till  the  Tenth  of  Sep- 
tember. 

And  whereas  there  is  great  breach  of  the  Sabbath,  by 
Rogues,  Vagabonds,  and  Beggars,  It  is  further  Or- 
dained, That  the  Lord  Mayor  of  the  City  of  London, 
and  all  Justices  of  the  Peace,  Constables,  Churchward- 
ens, and  other  Officers  and  Ministers  whatsoever,  shall 
from  time  to  time,  cause  all  Laws  against  Rogues,  and 
Vagabonds,  and  Beggars,  to  be  put  in  due  execution  ; 
and  take  order,  that  all  Rogues,  Vagabonds,  and  Beg- 
gars do  on  every  Sabbath  day  repair  to  some  Church  or 
Chapel,  and  remain  there  soberly  and  orderly,  during 
the  time  of  Divine  Worship. 

And  that  all  and  singular  Person  and  Persons  that 
shall  do  anything  in  the  execution  of  this  Ordinance, 
shall  be  protected  and  saved  harmless  by  the  Power  and 
Authority  of  Parliament. 

And  be  it  further  Ordained,  That  this  Ordinance  be 
Printed  and  Published,  and  read  in  all  Parish  Churches 
and  Chappels,  before  the  Sermon  in  the  Morning,  on 
some  Lord's-day,  before  the  First  of  May  next,  on  the 


I20  Sunday  Legislation, 

South  side  of  Trent ;  and  before  the  First  of  June  next 
on  the  North  side  of  Trent. 
Dated  6  April,  1644. 

Scobell's  "  Acts  of  Cromwell,"  pp.  dZ^  69,  part  i, 
London,  1658. 

In  spite  of  all  efforts  by  Church  and  state 
there  was  still  much  disregard  for  the  Sunday, 
and  six  years  later  we  find  the  following  more 
stringent  enactments  put  forth  : 

For  the  more  effectual  executing  of  all  such  Laws, 
Statutes  and  Ordinances  of  Parliament,  for  the  due  Ob- 
servation and  Sanctification  of  the  Lord's-day,  days  of 
publique  Humiliation  and  Thanksgiving  and  for  the 
further  preventing  the  prophanation  thereof,  It  is  En- 
acted and  Declared  by  this  present  Parliament,  and  by 
the  Authority  of  the  same.  That  all  and  every  High  Con- 
stable, Petty  Constable,  Headborough,  Churchwarden 
or  Overseer  of  the  Poor  or  other  Officers,  or  any  of  the 
Governors  of  the  Company  of  Watermen,  upon  their 
own  view  or  knowledge  of  any  the  offense  or  offenses 
committed  or  done  against  any  Article,  Clause,  or  pro- 
vision of  any  the  said  Laws,  Statutes,  or  Ordinances; 
and  all  and  every  person  and  persons  whatsoever,  by 
Warrant  from  any  Justice  of  Peace,  Mayor,  BayHff  or 
other  Head-Officer,  are  hereby  authorized  and  required 
to  seize  and  secure  all  such  Wares  or  Goods  cryed, 
shewed  forth  or  put  to  sale  upon  the  days  and  times 
aforesaid,  contrary  to  this  present  Act,  or  any  Statute  or 
Ordinance  of  Parliament,  to  the  end  proceedings  may 
be  thereupon  had,  according  to  the  true  intent  and 
meaning  of  this  present  Act,  or  any  the  said  Laws, 
Statutes  and  Ordinances. 


During  the  Puritan  Stipremacy.     121 

And  it  is  further  Enacted,  That  no  Traveller,  Wag- 
goner, Butcher,  Higler,  Drover,  their  or  any  of  their 
Servants,  shall  travel  or  come  into  his  or  their  Inn  or 
Lodging,  after  Twelve  of  the  Clock  on  any  Saturday 
night ;  nor  shall  any  person  travel  from  his  House,  Inn 
or  other  place,  till  after  one  a  clock  on  Munday  morn- 
ing, without  good  and  urgent  cause,  not  incurred 
through  the  neglect  or  occasion  of  the  person  so  doing, 
to  be  allowed  by  any  Justice  of  the  Peace  or  Head  Offi- 
cer before  whom  complaint  shall  be  made,  upon  pain 
that  every  such  Traveller,  Waggoner,  Butcher,  Higler. 
Drover  and  their  Servants,  and  also  every  Inn  keeper 
and  Alehouse  keeper  that  shall  so  entertain  him  or 
them,  shall  each  of  them  forfeit  Ten  shillings  for  every 
such  offense. 

And  if  any  Writ,  Warrant  or  Order  (except  in  case 
of  Treason,  Murther,  Felony,  or  breach  of  the  Peace, 
prophanation  of  the  Lord's-Day,  days  of  Thanksgiving 
or  Humiliation,  or  suspition  of  them  or  either  or  any  of 
them)  shall  be  from  and  after  the  First  day  of  May,  in 
the  year  One  thousand  six  hundred  and  fifty,  served 
or  executed  upon  any  the  aforesaid  days,  every  such 
execution  of  such  Writ,  Warrant  or  Order  upon  the 
said  days  respectively,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby  declared 
to  be  of  no  effect ;  and  the  person  or  persons  that  shall 
serve  or  execute  such  Writ,  Warrant  or  Order,  or  cause 
the  same  to  be  served  or  executed,  shall  forfeit  and  pay 
to  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  parish  where  such  offense 
shall  be  committed  five  pounds,  to  be  levied  upon  his  or 
their  goods  and  Chattels  in  maner  aforesaid,  rendering 
the  overplus. 

And  it  is  further  Enacted  and  Declared  by  the  Au- 
thority aforesaid.  That  no  person  or  persons  shall  use, 


122  Sunday  Legislation, 

imploy  or  travel  upon  the  Lord's-day,  or  the  said  days 
of  Humiliation  or  Thanksgiving,  with  any  Boat,  Wher- 
ry, Lighter,  Barge,  Horse,  Coach  or  Sedan,  either  in  the 
City  of  London  or  elsewhere  (except  it  be  to  or  from 
some  place  for  the  service  of  God,  or  upon  other  extraor- 
dinary occasion,  to  be  allowed  by  the  next  Justice  of 
Peace  to  the  place  where  the  said  fact  shall  be  com- 
mitted ; )  upon  pain  that  every  such  person  or  persons 
that  shall  use  such  Boat,  Wherry,  Lighter,  Barge,  Horse, 
Coach  or  Sedan,  contrary  to  the  true  meaning  of  this 
present  Act  (except  it  be  in  the  Cases  aforesaid)  shall 
for  every  such  Offense  forfeit  and  lose  the  sum  of  Ten 
shillings  ;  and  that  every  Boat-man,  Sedan-man,  Coach- 
man or  other  person,  that  shall  so  labor  or  travel  in  or 
with  any  such  Boat,  Wherry,  Lighter,  Barge,  Sedan, 
Horse  or  Coach,  shall  forfeit  for  every  such  offense  Five 
shillings. 

And  it  is  further  enacted  and  declared.  That 
every  person  and  persons  which  upon  the  said  Lord's 
day,  days  of  Humiliation  or  Thanksgiving,  shall  be  in 
any  Tavern,  Inn,  Alehouse,  Tobacco-house  or  Shop  or 
Victualling  House  (unless  he  lodge  there,  or  be  there  up- 
on some  lawful  or  necessary  occasion)  to  be  allowed  of 
by  such  Judge,  Justice,  or  other  person  who  is  author- 
ized by  this  Act  to  put  the  same  in  execution ;  and 
every  person  or  persons  which  upon  the  said  days  shall 
be  dancing,  prophanely  singing,  drinking  or  tipling  in 
any  Tavern,  Inn,  Alehouse,  Victualling-house,  or  Tobac- 
co-house or  Shop,  or  shall  harbor  or  entertain  any  per- 
son or  persons  so  offending ;  or  which  shall  grinde  or 
cause  to  be  ground  in  any  Mill,  any  Corn  or  grain  upon 
any  the  said  days,  except  in  case  of  necessity,  to  be  al- 
lowed by  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  every  such  Offender 


During  the  Puritan  Supremacy,     123 

shall  forfeit  and  pay  the  sum  of  ten  shillings  for  every 
such  offense,  to  be  levied  as  aforesaid. 

And  for  the  more  vigorous  and  due  execution  of  the 
Laws,  Statutes  and  Ordinances  aforesaid,  and  of  this 
present  Act,  it  is  hereby  further  Enacted,  That  every 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  Head  Officer,  or  Officers  of  every 
Town  Corporate  or  place,  and  every  Constable,  Head- 
borough,  Churchwarden,  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and 
Governors  of  the  Company  of  Watermen,  and  other 
persons  authorized  as  aforesaid,  are  hereby  required  and 
enjoined  to  make  diligent  search  for  the  discovering, 
finding  out,  apprehending  and  punishing  of  all  Offend- 
ers against  this  and  other  Laws,  Ordinances  and  Acts 
made  for  the  Observation  of  the  Lord's-day,  and  Days  of 
Publique  Fasting  and  Thanksgiving;  And  if  any  the 
said  Justices  of  Peace,  and  other  Officers  aforesaid,  upon 
View  or  Information  of  any  the  said  Offenses  to  be  com- 
mitted, shall  be  negligent,  or  refuse  to  do  his  duty  in 
putting  this  or  other  the  said  Ordinances,  Laws  or  Acts 
in  execution,  ever  such  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  other 
Head-Officer,  upon  proof  thereof  before  the  Lord  Chief 
Justice  of  either  Bench,  or  Lord  Chief  Baron  of  the 
Exchequer,  or  before  any  Judge  or  Judges  of  Assize,  by 
one  or  more  Witnesses,  or  by  view  or  confession  of  the 
party,  shall  for  every  such  Offense  incur  the  Penalty  of 
Five  pounds,  and  upon  refusal  of  payment  thereof,  to  be 
levyed  upon  his  Goods  or  Chattels,  by  Warrant  from  the 
said  Lord  Chief  Justices,  or  Lord  Chief  Baron,  Judge  or 
Judges  of  Assize  respectively,  by  distress  and  sale  of  the 
Goods  of  every  such  person,  returning  the  overplus  ; 
and  every  High  Constable,  Petty  Constable,  Churchward- 
en and  other  Officer,  shall  forfeit  and  pay  for  his 
neglect  aforesaid,  the  sum  of  Twenty  shillings;  and  for 


124  Sunday  Legislation, 

default  of  payment  thereof,  the  same  to  be  levyed  by 
Warrant  from  any  Justice  of  the  Peace,  directed  to  the 
High  Constable  of  the  Hundred,  or  other  Officer  where 
the  Offense  shall  be  committed,  for  the  levying  of  the 
said  penalty  by  way  of  distress  and  sale  of  the  Offenders 
Goods,  and  returning  the  overplus  as  aforesaid;  And 
all  other  penalties  imposed  by  this  Act,  for  which  no 
way  of  levying  is  provided  by  the  said  former  Laws  and 
Ordinances,  shall  be  levyed  by  Warrant  from  any  one 
Justice  of  Peace,  Mayor,  Bayliff,  or  Head  Officer,  by  dis- 
tress and  sale  of  the  Offenders  goods ;  and  for  want  of 
payment  thereof,  or  such  distress  to  be  found,  by  setting 
the  Offenders  in  the  Stocks  or  Cage  for  the  space  of  six 
hours. 

And  it  is  likewise  Enacted  and  Declared,  That  all 
Judges,  Justices  of  Assize,  and  Justices  of  Peace  at  their 
Assizes  or  Quarter  Sessions,  shall  in  their  several  and 
respective  Circuits  and  Courts  give  in  charge  to  the 
Grand  Jury,  to  enquire  of  and  present  all  neglects  of 
Justices,  Constables,  and  Other  Officers  in  the  due  exe- 
cution of  this  present  Act,  and  other  Laws,  Ordinances 
and  Statutes  made  for  the  Observation  of  the  Lord's 
day,  and  Days  of  Publique  Fasting  and  Thanksgiving, 
who  are  hereby  strictly  commanded  to  present  the 
same. 

And  it  is  also  hereby  Enacted,  That  the  Lord  Mayor 
and  Aldermen,  Sheriffs,  and  Justices  of  Peace  of  the 
City  of  London,  County  of  Middlesex,  and  City  of  West- 
minster, and  Borough  of  Southwark,  together  with  the 
Heads  and  Governors  of  the  several  Inns  of  Court  and 
Chancery;  and  all  and  every  Justice  of  Peace,  Mayors, 
Bayliffs,  and  other  Head  Officers,  and  every  of  them, 
are  hereby  authorized  and  required  to  take  a  speedy  and 


During  the  PttrUan  Supremacy,     125 

effectual  course,  by  such  means  as  they  shall  think  most 
meet  within  their  respective  Jurisdictions,  to  restrain  as 
aforesaid  the  prophanation  of  the  said  days  ;  upon  pain 
that  the  Lord  Mayor,  Aldermen,  Sheriffs  and  Justices  in 
London,  and  Middlesex,  and  Westminster,  Heads  of  the 
several  Inns  or  Courts,  and  Chancery,  Justices  and  other 
Head-Officers,  which  shall  neglect  to  do  what  belongs  to 
their  several  duties  and  places  therein,  shall  forfeit  the 
sum  of  Five  pounds,  to  be  levyed  in  such  manner  as  the 
fines  imposed  on  Justices  of  Peace  for  their  neglects,  are 
hereby  appointed  to  be  levyed  as  aforesaid. 

And  it  is  Enacted  and  Declared  by  the  Authority 
aforesaid,  That  this  Act  be  forthwith  printed  and  bound 
up  together  with  all  the  former  Statutes  and  Ordinances 
now  in  force  for  observation  of  the  Lord's  day,  Pub- 
lique  Fasting,  and  Thanksgiving  days,  and  published  by 
the  Justice  of  Peace,  or  Chief  Officer  or  Officers  afore- 
said, and  read  at  their  next  Quarter  Sessions  after  they 
shall  receive  the  same ;  and  also  by  them  sent  unto  or 
left  at  the  several  houses  of  the  Ministers  of  the  respect- 
ive Parishes  within  their  respective  limits,  who  are  here- 
by required  and  appointed  in  all  the  Churches  and 
Chappels  within  this  Commonwealth,  publiquely  to  read 
or  cause  to  be  read,  all  and  every  the  said  Statutes  and 
Ordinances  so  bound  up  together,  the  next  Lord's- 
day  after  he  or  they  shall  receive  the  same,  before  the 
morning  Sermon  ;  and  that  afterward  once  every  year 
(viz.)  upon  the  first  Lord's-day  in  March,  before  the 
morning  Sermon,  they  read  or  cause  to  be  read  like- 
wise this  present  and  the  former  Acts  and  Ordinances 
aforesaid ;  the  due  performance  whereof  the  said  Justices 
of  Peace  and  other  Head  Officers  are  commanded  to 
inquire   after,  and  certifie   the   names   of   the   persons 


126  Sunday  Legislation. 

making  default  in  reading  and  publishing  the  premises, 
according  to  this  present  Act,  to  the  Speaker  of  the  Par- 
liament, and  in  the  intervals  thereof,  to  the  Council  of 
State  ;  and  the  Justices  of  Peace  at  their  Quarter  Ses- 
sions, shall  duly  cause  this  Act,  together  with  the  said 
Statutes  and  ordinances  to  be  openly  read. 

And  it  is  lastly  Enacted,  That  in  any  Action  brought 
against  any  Justice  of  Peace,  Constable,  or  any  other 
Officer  or  person  acting  or  doing,  or  commanding  to  be 
acted  or  done  any  thing  in  pursuance  of  this  or  any 
former  Law,  Act  or  Ordinance  now  in  force  touching  or 
concerning  any  the  Offenses  or  matters  aforesaid,  the  De- 
fendant in  every  such  Action  shall  and  may  plead  the  Gen- 
eral Issue,  and  give  the  special  matter  in  Evidence  ;  and 
upon  the  Non-Suit  of  the  Plaintiff,  or  Verdict  passing 
for  the  Defendant,  the  party  Defendant  shall  have  and 
recover  his  and  their  treble  Costs,  or  at  the  election  of 
such  party,  shall  have  his  reparation  by  the  Com^mittee 
of  Parliament  for  indempnity.  And  it  is  hereby  Or- 
dained, That  all  persons  whatsoever  shall  be  ayding  and 
assisting  to  all  Justices  of  Peace,  Head-Ofhcers,  Consta- 
bles, and  other  Officers  and  persons,  in  the  execution  of 
this  or  the  said  former  Acts  and  Ordinances  in  and  con- 
cerning the  premises. 

Passed  19  April,  1650. 

Scobell's  "Acts  of  Cromwell,"  part  ii,  pp.  119- 
121. 

The  foregoing  laws  continued  for  a  few  years, 
but  being  inadequate  to  accomplish  what  was  de- 
sired, the  effort  was  renewed  in  the  following 
laws,  which  are  remarkable  for  their  extent  and 
minuteness  as  to  details.     The  fall  of  the  Com- 


During  the  Puritmi  Supremacy,     127 

monwealth  within  three  years  from  the  passage 
of  the  following  enactments  broke  the  Crom- 
wellian  supremacy,  and  put  an  end  to  legislation 
by  the  Commonwealth : 

Forasmuch  as  God  hath  appointed  one  day  in  Seven 
to  be  kept  holy  unto  himself,  and  that  in  order  there- 
unto man  should  abstain  from  the  works  of  his  ordinary 
calling,  and  hath  intrusted  the  Magistrate  amongst 
others,  to  take  care  thereof  within  his  gates  ;  and  where- 
as it  is  found  by  daily  experience,  that  the  first  day  of 
the  week  (being  the  Lord's-day,  and  since  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Christ  to  be  acknowledged  the  Christian  Sabbath) 
is  frequently  neglected  and  prophaned  to  the  dishonor 
of  Christ,  and  Profession  of  the  Gospel;  therefore  for 
the  better  observation  of  the  said  Day,  and  preventing 
in  some  measure  such  Prophanation  thereof  for  the 
future,  be  it  enacted  by  his  Highness  the  Lord  Protector, 
and  the  Parliament  of  the  Commonwealth  of  England, 
Scotland  and  Ireland,  and  the  Dominions  thereunto  be- 
longing, that  whatsoever  person  or  persons  within  this 
commonwealth  shall  be  found  guilty  according  to  this  act, 
of  doing  and  committing  the  offenses  hereafter  mentioned 
upon  the  said  Lord's-day,  that  is  to  say,  betwixt  twelve 
of  the  clock  on  Saturday  night  and  twelve  of  the  clock 
Lord's-day  night,  shall  be  adjudged,  deemed  and  taken 
to  be  guilty  of  prophaning  the  Lord's-day  ;  that  is  to  say 
every  person  being  a  waggoner,  carrier,  butcher,  higler, 
drover,  or  any  of  their  servants  travelling  or  coming  by 
land  or  water,  into  his  or  their  inn,  house,  or  lodging 
within  the  times  aforesaid ;  and  every  inn  keeper  victual- 
ler, or  ale-house  keeper,  who  shall  lodge  and  entertain 
any  such  waggoner,  carrier,  butcher,  higler,  drover  or 


128  Sunday  Legislation, 

their  servants,  coming  and  travelling  as  aforesaid  ;  Every 
person  using  or  employing  any  Boat,  Wherry,  Lighter, 
Barge,  Horse,  Coach  of  Sedan  or  travelling  or  laboring 
with  any  of  them  upon  the  day  aforesaid  (except  it  be 
to  and  from  some  place  for  the  service  of  God,  or  ex- 
cept in  case  of  necessity,  to  be  allowed  by  some  Justice 
of  the  Peace)  ;  Every  person  being  in  any  Tavern,  Inn, 
Alehouse,  Victualling  house,  Strongwater  house.  To- 
bacco house,  Cellar  or  Shop,  (not  lodging  there,  nor 
upon  urgent  necessity,  to  be  allowed  by  a  Justice  of 
Peace)  or  fetching  or  sending  for  any  wine,  ale  or  beer, 
tobacco,  strongwater,  or  other  strong  liquor  unneces- 
sarily, and  to  tipple  within  any  other  house  or  shop  ; 
And  the  keepers  or  owners  of  every  such  houses,  cellars 
or  shops,  keeping  or  causing  to  be  kept  their  doors  Oi- 
dinarily  and  usually  open  upon  the  Day  aforesaid ;  every 
person  dancing  or  prophanely  singing  or  playing  upon 
musical  instruments,  or  tippling  in  any  such  houses,  cell- 
lars  or  shops  or  elsewhere  upon  the  day  aforesaid,  or 
harbouring  or  entertaining  the  persons  so  offending  ; 
Every  person  grinding  or  causing  to  be  ground  any  corn 
or  grain  in  any  mill,  or  causing  any  fulling  or  other  mills 
to  work  upon  the  day  aforesaid  ;  And  every  person 
working  in  the  washing,  whiting,  or  drying  of  clothes 
thread  or  yarn,  or  causing  such  work  to  be  done,  upon 
the  day  aforesaid  ;  Every  person  setting  up,  burning  or 
branding  beet,  turf  or  earth,  upon  the  day  aforesaid ; 
Every  person  gathering  of  rates,  loans,  taxations,  or 
other  payments  upon  the  day  aforesaid  (except  to  the 
use  of  the  poor  in  the  public  collections)  ;  Every  chaund- 
ler  melting,  or  causing  to  be  melted,  tallow  or  wax  be- 
longing to  his  calling ;  and  every  common  brewer  and 
baker,  brewing  and   baking,   or  causing  bread  to  be 


During  the  Ftirita7t  Supremacy.     129 

baked,  or  beer  or  ale  to  be  brewed  upon  the  day  afore- 
said ;  And  every  butcher  killing  any  cattle,  and  every 
butcher,  coffermonger,  poulterer,  herb  seller,  cord 
wayner,  shoemaker  or  other  persons  selling,  exposing  or 
offering  to  sell  any  their  wares  or  commodities,  and  the 
persons  buying  such  wares  or  commodities,  upon  the  day 
aforesaid  ;  All  taylors  and  other  tradesmen,  fitting  or 
going  to  fit,  or  carry  any  v/earing  apparel  or  other 
things  ;  and  barbers  trimming  upon  the  day  aforesaid; 
All  persons  keeping,  using  or  being  present  upon  the  day 
aforesaid  at  any  Fairs,  Markets,  Wakes,  Revels,  Wrest- 
lings, Shootings,  Leaping,  Bowling,  Ringing  of  Bells  for 
pleasure,  or  upon  any  other  occasion  (saving  for  calling 
people  together  for  the  public  Worship)  Feasts,  Church 
Ale,  May-Poles,  Gaming,  Bear-Baiting,  Bull-Baiting,  or 
any  other  Sports  and  Pastimes  ;  All  persons  unneces- 
sarily walking  in  the  Church  or  Church-Yards,  or  else- 
where in  the  time  of  Public  Worship ;  And  all  persons 
vainly  and  profanely  walking,  on  the  day  aforesaid  ; 
And  all  persons  travelling,  carrying  Burthens,  or  doing 
any  worldly  labour  or  work  of  their  ordinary  Calling  on 
the  day  aforesaid,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  prophaning 
the  Lord's-day 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that 
every  person  being  of  the  age  of  fourteen  years  or  up- 
wards, offending  in  any  of  the  premises,  and  being  con- 
victed thereof  by  confession,  or  the  view  of  any  Mayor, 
Head-Officer  or  Justice  of  the  Peace,  or  upon  the  testi- 
mony of  one  or  more  witnesses  upon  oath,  before  any 
such  Mayor,  Head  Officer  or  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  the 
County,  City,  Division  or  place  where  the  offense  shall 
be  committed  (which  oath  the  said  Mayor,  Justice  of 
Peace  or  Head  Officer,  shall  and  may  administer)  shall 


130  Stcnday  Legislation. 

for  every  such  offense  whereof  he  shall  be  so  convicted, 
forfeit  the  sum  of  ten  shillings;  Besides  which  for- 
feitures, all  and  every  person  and  persons  selling,  ex- 
posing, or  offering  to  sell  any  wares  or  commodities  upon 
the  day  aforesaid,  and  in  like  manner  duly  convicted, 
shall  have  their  wares  and  commodities  so  sold,  exposed 
or  offered  to  be  sold,  seized  and  disposed  of  as  is  by  this 
act  appointed. 

Provided,  and  it  is  hereby  enacted  and  declared,  that 
nothing  in  this  act  contained,  shall  extend  to  the  pro- 
hibiting the  dressing  of  meat  in  private  families,  or  the 
dressing  or  sale  of  victuals  in  a  moderate  way  in  Inns, 
Victualling-houses,  or  Cooks'  Shops,  for  the  use  of-  such 
as  cannot  otherwise  be  provided  for,  or  to  the  crying  or 
selling  of  milk  before  nine  of  the  clock  in  the  morning 
or  after  four  of  the  clock  in  the  afternoon,  from  the  tenth 
of  September,  till  the  tenth  of  March  ;  or  before  eight  of 
the  clock  in  the  morning,  or  after  five  of  the  clock  in  the 
afternoon,  from  the  tenth  of  March  till  the  tenth  of  Sep- 
tember, yearly,  nor  to  hinder  any  other  works  of  piety, 
necessity  or  mercy,  to  be  allowed  by  a  Justice  of  Peace. 

And  whereas  many  navigable  rivers  or  waters  extend 
themselves  into,  or  are  the  bounds  of  more  counties  than 
one,  by  reason  whereof  some  doubts  have  been  raised, 
whether  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  of  any  County  lying 
on  the  one  side  of  such  river  have  any,  or  how  far  they 
may  have,  jurisdiction  or  power  upon  or  over  the  same; 
be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that 
the  Justices  of  Peace  of  any  such  county,  or  the  Con- 
stable or  other  officers  of  any  Parish  lying  on  either  side 
of  such  river,  shall  have  power,  and  are  hereby  author- 
ized and  required  to  put  this  Act  in  execution,  for  the 
apprehending  and  punishing  of  all  Water-Men,  Barge- 


During  the  Purita7i  Supremacy.     131 

Men  or  other  persons  whatsoever,  who  shall  on  the  said 
day  be  found  contrary  to  this  Act,  travelling,  rowing  or 
working  in  or  with  any  boat,  lighter,  barge,  or  other 
smaller  vessel  on  any  part  of  such  river,  and  the  said 
boats,  lighters,  barges  and  other  vessels,  shall  seize  and 
stay,  or  cause  to  be  seized  and  stayed,  until  twelve  of 
the  clock  of  the  said  night,  and  until  the  penalties  here- 
by inflicted  on  such  person  or  persons  as  shall  be  dis- 
covered to  have  offended  therein,  be  duly  paid  and  satis- 
fied to  the  officer  or  officers  of  that  town  or  parish  (on 
either  side  such  river)  as  shall  first  discover  and  attempt 
the  pursuing,  seizing  or  staying  thereof. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  all 
elections,  swearing  and  taking  of  place  of  Mayors,  Sher- 
iffs, Bayliffs,  Aldermen,  or  other  officer  whatsoever,  in 
any  city,  borough,  town  corporate,  or  any  other  place 
within  this  Commonwealth,  that  after  the  first  day  of 
August  next  ensuing,  by  virtue  or  color  of  any  Act  of 
Parliament,  charter,  custom,  prescription,  or  otherwise, 
should  or  might  fall  out  to  be  upon  a  Lord's  day  ;  and 
all  commissions  and  courts,  which  by  means  of  any  ad- 
journment or  other  cause;  and  all  returns  of  writs 
which  shall  fall  out  to  be  upon  any  Lord's-day  as  afore- 
said, shall  be,  and  are  hereby  authorized  and  required 
to  be  kept,  had  and  done,  sat  upon,  and  executed  upon 
the  next  day  which  shall  ensue  such  Lord's-day  ;  and  all 
Mayors,  Recorders,  Stewards,  Town  Clerk,  or  other 
officers  or  persons  whatsoever,  that  have,  or  after  the 
said  first  day  of  August  next,  shall  have  power  and  au- 
thority to  elect,  swear,  or  give  any  charge  or  oath  for 
taking  any  such  place,  oath  or  office,  or  to  keep  any 
courts,  shall  and  may,  and  are  hereby  authorized  and 
required  to  make   such  elections,  give   such  oath  and 


132  Sunday  Legislation. 

charge,  and  take  such  oaths,  places  ,or  offices,  or  keep 
such  courts  as  above  said,  upon  the  day  next  ensuing 
such  Lord's-day  ;  and  that  all  customs,  rents,  and  serv- 
ices due  to  lords  of  mannors,  which  by  virtue  of  any 
custom,  prescription  or  otherwise,  are,  or  ought  to  be 
done,  performed,  and  paid  upon  any  Lord's-day,  shall, 
after  the  said  first  day  of  August  next,  be  done,  per- 
formed and  paid  upon  the  day  next  following  such 
Lord's  day,  and  shall  be  as  valid  and  effectual  to  all  in- 
tents and  purposes  whatsoever,  as  if  the  same  had  been 
done  upon  the  said  Lord's-day  ;  and  that  all  rents,  sums 
of  money,  covenants  and  conditions,  payable  or  per- 
formable  upon  any  Lord's  day,  shall  and  may. be  paid 
and  performed  upon  the  day  next  ensuing  such  Lord's- 
Day,  and  that  such  payment  and  performance  thereof, 
shall  be  as  good  and  effectual  in  the  Law,  to  all  intents 
and  purposes,  to  save  all  penalties,  re-entries  or  for- 
feitures whatsoever,  as  if  the  same  had  been  made  and 
performed  at  or  upon  the  day  limited  or  appointed  in  or 
by  any  bond,  lease,  covenant,  indenture,  or  other  deed 
or  agreement  whatsoever,  any  law,  usage  or  custom  to 
the  contrary  hereof  notwithstanding. 

And  that  no  Fair,  Market,  or  Proclamation  of  any 
Fair  or  Market  shall  be  had,  made  or  used  upon  any 
Lord's-day,  but  upon  the  day  next  ensuing,  nor  shall  any 
person  or  persons  serve,  or  caused  to  be  served,  any 
writ,  process,  warrant,  order,  judgement  or  decree  (ex- 
cept in  causes  of  treason,  felony,  breach  of  the  peace, 
and  prophanation  of  the  Lord's-day)  upon  pain  that 
every  person  and  persons  bodies  politic  and  corporate, 
offending  in  any  the  particulars  last  mentioned,  shall 
forfeit  the  sum  of  five  pounds  to  be  recovered  in  name 
of  the  Lord  Protector,  by  bill,  plaint,  writ  or  action  of 


During  the  Picritan  StLpremacy,     133 

debt  in  any  Court  of  Record,  or  upon  information  or 
indictment  before  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  in  the  open 
Sessions,  v/ho  have  hereby  power  to  hear  and  determine 
the  same,  and  to  be  disposed  ;  viz.  One  moyety  to  the 
use  of  His  Highness,  the  Lord  Protector,  and  the  other 
moyety  to  the  use  of  him  or  them  that  will  sue  or  prose- 
cute for  the  same  ;  and  that  the  service  of  every  such 
writ,  action,  process,  warrant  order,  judgment  or  de- 
cree shall  be  void  to  all  intents  and  purposes  what- 
soever. 

And  whereas  many  Fairs  and  Markets  are  kept  upon 
Saturdays  and  Mundays,  whereby  is  often  occasioned  the 
profanation  of  the  Lord's-day,  it  is  hereby  enacted  by 
the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  all  and  every  person  and 
persons  resorting  to  sell  or  buy  commodities  in  any  such 
Fairs  and  Markets,  shall  in  due  time  come  to  and  depart 
from  the  same,  and  strictly  observe  the  laws  and  rules  of 
the  Markets,  that  the  observation  of  the  Lord's  day  may 
not  thereby  be  violated,  upon  pain  that  every  person 
travelling  to  or  from  such  Fairs  or  Markets  upon  the 
Lord's-day,  and  duly  convicted  as  aforesaid,  before  one 
or  more  Justices  of  the  Peace,  who  have  hereby  power 
by  their  own  view,  confession  of  the  parties,  or  the  oath 
of  one  or  more  v/itness  (which  oath  they  may  administer) 
to  hear  and  determine  the  same,  shall  forfeit  for  every 
offense  the  sum  of  ten  shillings. 

And  to  the  end  this  Act  may  be  duly  observed  and 
henceforth  put  in  execution,  be  it  enacted  by  the  Au- 
thority aforesaid,  that  all  and  every  Mayor,  Head  Officers 
and  Justices  of  Peace  within  their  respective  Counties, 
limits  and  jurisdictions,  are  hereby  enjoyned  and  author- 
ized from  time  to  time  under  their  hands  and  seals,  to 
appoint  and  require  such  Churchwardens,  Overseers  of 
10 


134  Sunday  Legislation, 

the  Poor,  Constables,  and  other  persons  within  their 
several  jurisdictions,  as  they  shall  think  fit,  to  seize  and 
secure  such  wares  and  commodities  as  shall  be  sold,  ex- 
posed, cryed  or  offered  to  sale  contrary  to  this  Act,  upon 
the  day  aforesaid,  and  to  search  for,  discover,  secure, 
apprehend  and  bring  before  them  or  any  other  Justice  of 
Peace  of  the  County  or  place  where  they  shall  be  appre- 
hended, all  and  every  person  and  persons  whom  they 
shall  find  prophaning  and  violating,  or  shall  know  or  be 
informed  to  have  prophaned  and  violated  the  Lord's- 
day  in  any  of  the  particulars  herein  mentioned,  or  shall 
have  just  cause  to  suspect  for  the  same  ;  which  said 
warrant  so  received,  the  said  Constables,  Tythingmen, 
Churchwardens,  Overseers  of  the  Poor,  or  either  of  them 
to  whom  the  said  warrant  is  or  shall  be  directed,  shall 
make  publication  of  in  the  said  Parish-Church  or  Chap- 
pel  fourteen  days  before  execution  of  the  same,  and  after 
such  publication  and  end  of  the  said  fourteen  days,  the 
said  Constables,  Tythingmen  or  Overseers  of  the  Poor 
so  authorized,  and  every  of  them,  are  hereby  required 
and  authorized  to  do  and  perform  their  duties  accord- 
ingly, without  expecting  any  particular  warrant  for  the 
same,  upon  such  pains  and  penalties  as  are  hereafter 
in  this  Act  inflicted  upon  v\^illful  neglecters  of  their 
duty. 

And  for  the  better  execution  of  the  powers  aforesaid, 
the  Constables,  Churchwardens  or  Overseer  of  the  Poor 
so  authorized,  are  hereby  required  and  authorized  to  de- 
mand entrance  into  any  dwelling-house  or  other  place 
whatsoever  suspected  by  them  to  harbor,  entertain  or 
suffer  to  be  any  person  or  persons  prophaning  the  Lord's 
day;  and  if  such  entrance  be  either  willfully  delay  or 
refused,  all  and  every  person  or  persons  so  delaying  or 


During  the  Puritan  Supremacy,     135 

refusing,  being  convicted  thereof  (as  by  this  Act  is  ap- 
pointed) shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  twenty  shillings. 

And  all  Churchwardens  and  Overseers  of  the  Poor, 
and  Constables  within  their  several  limits,  are  hereby 
injoyned  and  authorized  upon  their  own  view  and 
knowledge,  as  well  with  warrant  as  without,  to  seize,  and 
secure  all  such  wares  and  commodities,  sold,  exposed  or 
offered  to  be  sold,  and  to  apprehend,  secure  and  stop  all 
offenders  against  this  law,  with  their  horses  and  carriages 
(if  any  such  shall  be)  and  after  apprehension,  to  bring 
such  offenders  before  any  Justice  of  Peace,  to  be  dealt 
with  according  to  the  directions  of  this  Act  unless  the 
offender  shall  forthwith  pay  the  penalty  forfeited  by  this 
Act  to  such  officer. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  if 
any  children  or  servants  under  the  age  of  fourteen  years, 
offending  in  any  of  the  offenses  within  this  Act  men- 
tioned, and  thereof  convicted  before  any  Mayor,  Head- 
officer,  or  any  one  or  more  Justices  of  the  Peace  as 
aforesaid,  the  parents,  guardians,  masters,  mistresses  or 
tutors  of  all  such  children  and  servants  shall  forfeit  the 
sum  of  one  shilling  for  every  such  servant  or  child  so 
offending  and  thereof  convicted  as  aforesaid,  unless  such 
parent,  guardian,  master,  mistress  or  tutor,  shall  in  the 
presence  of  the  Churchwardens,  Overseers  for  the  Poor, 
or  other  officer,  or  one  of  them,  give  or  cause  to  be  given 
unto  such  child  or  servant  so  offending,  due  correction. 

And  to  the  end  that  no  prophane  licentious  person  or 
persons  whatsoever  may  in  the  least  measure  receive 
encouragement  to  neglect  the  performance  of  Religious 
and  Holy  duties  on  the  said  day,  by  colour  of  any  law 
or  laws  giving  liberty  to  truly  tender  consciences ;  be  it 
enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  all  and  every 


136  Su7iday  Legislatio7t, 

person  and  persons  shall  (having  no  reasonable  excuse 
for  their  absence,  to  be  allowed  by  a  Justice  of  Peace  of 
the  County  where  the  offense  shall  be  committed)  upon 
every  Lord's-day  diligently  report  to  some  Church  or 
Chappel  where  the  true  worship  and  service  of  God  is 
exercised,  or  shall  be  present  at  some  other  convenient 
Meeting  place  of  Christians,  not  differing  in  matters  of 
faith  from  the  publique  profession  of  the  nation,  as  it  is 
expressed  in  the  humble  petition  and  advice  of  the  Par- 
liament to  His  Highness  the  Lord  Protector,  where  the 
Lord's-day  shall  be  duly  sanctified,  according  to  the  true 
intent  and  meaning  of  this  act,  upon  pain  that  all  and 
every  such  person  or  persons  so  offending,  shall  for  every 
such  offense,  being  thereof  convicted  forfeit  the  sum  of 
two  shillings  and  six  pence. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that 
no  person  being  the  minister  or  publique  preacher  of 
or  in  any  Church,  Chappel  or  publique  congregation 
within  this  Commonwealth,  and  officiating  and  doing  his 
duty  therein  upon  any  Lord's-day,  or  at  any  other  times, 
shall  be  molested,  hindered  or  disturbed  therein  by  any 
person  whatsoever  ;  and  if  any  person  or  persons  shall 
after  the  first  day  of  August  next  ensuing,  maliciously, 
wilfully,  or  of  purpose  molest,  let,  disturb,  disquiet  or 
otherwise  trouble  any  such  minister  or  publique  preacher 
in  the  doing  and  performing  the  duty  of  their  respective 
places,  or  in  his  going  to  or  returning  from  such  place, 
or  make  or  cause  to  be  made  any  publique  disturbance 
in  any  part  of  the  Lord's-day  in  any  of  the  places  afore- 
said, it  shall,  and  may  be  lawful  to  and  for  any  Church- 
warden, Overseer  of  the  Poor,  or  Constable  of  the  Parish 
and  place  where  such  molestation,  disturbance  and  dis- 
quieting shall  be,  and  they  are  hereby  enjoined  to  appre- 


During  the  Pttritan  Supremacy,     137 

hend  all  and  every  person  and  persons  offending  there- 
in ;  or  in  case  of  escape  before  such  apprehension,  for 
the  Churchwardens,  Overseers  of  the  Poor,  or  Constables 
of  any  other  Parish  or  place  where  such  offender  shall 
be  found,  to  apprehend  them  and  every  of  them,  as  well 
without  warrant  as  with  warrant,  and  bring  them  before 
the  Mayor,  or  any  Justice  of  the  Peace  or  Head-Officer 
where  any  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  apprehended, 
and  if  such  Mayor,  Justice  or  Head  Ofhcer  shall  find 
cause  upon  his  own  view,  confession  of  the  party,  or  the 
oath  of  one  or  more  sufficient  witnesses  (which  oath  he 
shall  have  hereby  power  to  administer)  then  he  shall 
commit  such  person  to  prison,  there  to  remain  without 
bail  or  mainprize  until  the  next  general  Sessions  of  the 
Peace  to  be  holden  for  the  County,  City  or  place  where 
the  offense  shall  be  committed  ;  and  if  upon  information, 
presentment  or  indictment,  such  person  or  persons  shall 
at  the  General  Sessions  of  the  Peace  (who  have  hereby 
power  to  hear  and  determine  the  same  by  confession  or 
oath  of  two  or  more  sufficient  witnesses)  be  found  guilty 
for  maliciously,  v/ilfully  or  of  purpose  molesting,  letting, 
disturbing  or  otherwise  troubling  such  minister  or  public 
preacher,  or  making  any  disturbance  as  aforesaid,  every 
person  so  convicted,  shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  five  pounds, 
one  moyety  to  the  use  of  His  Highness  the  Lord  Pro- 
tector and  the  other  moyety  to  him  or  them  that  will  sue 
or  prosecute  for  the  same ;  or  at  the  discretion  of  the 
said  Justices,  shall  be  sent  to  the  House  of  Correction  or 
Work-house,  to  be  set  at  hard  labour  ;  with  such  mod- 
erate correction,  as  in  the  discretion  of  the  said  Justices 
shall  be  thought  fit,  for  some  time,  not  exceeding  six 
months. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  all 


138  Sunday  Legislation. 

persons  contriving,  printing  or  publishing  any  papers, 
books  or  pamphlets  for  allowance  of  sports  and  pastimes 
upon  the  Lord's-day,  or  against  the  morality  thereof, 
shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  five  pounds,  or  be  committed  to 
the  House  of  Correction  as  aforesaid. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  in 
case  any  wares,  or  commodities  shall  be  seized  and  se- 
cured for  being  sold,  exposed,  or  offered  to  be  sold,  con- 
trary to  this  Act  and  the  offenders  therein  convicted  as 
aforesaid,  all  such  wares  and  commodities,  or  the  value 
thereof,  at  the  discretion  of  the  Mayor,  Head  Officer  or 
Justice,  shall  be  disposed  of  to  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the 
parish  where  such  wares  shall  be  first  seized,  saving  that 
it  shall  be  in  the  power  of  such  Mayor,  Justice  of  Peace 
or  Head-Officer,  out  of  the  same  to  reward  any  person 
that  shall  inform,  or  otherwise  prosecute  any  person 
for  the  said  offense,  according  to  their  discretion,  so  as 
such  reward  exceed  not  the  third  part  of  the  wares  and 
commodities  so  seized,  and  so  as  no  reward  be  given  to 
any  person  upon  whose  oath  only  the  offender  shall  be 
convicted  ;  and  all  sums  of  money  and  forfeitures  not 
otherwise  disposed  of  by  this  Act,  shall  be  employed  for 
the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  Parish  where  the  several  of- 
fenses shall  be  committed,  saving  onely  that  it  shall  be 
lawful!  to  and  for  any  Mayor,  Justice  of  Peace  or  Head 
Officer,  out  of  the  said  forfeitures  to  reward  any  such 
persons  that  shall  inform,  or  otherwise  prosecute  any 
persons  for  the  same,  according  to  their  discretion,  so  as 
such  reward  exceed  not  the  third  part  of  the  forfeiture, 
and  so  as  no  reward  be  given  to  any  person  upon  whose 
oath  onely  the  offender  shall  be  convicted. 

Provided  always,  that  no  person  or  persons  shall  be 
impeached  or  molested  for  any  offense  within  this  Act, 


During  the  Puritan  Supremacy.     139 

unless  he  or  they  be  thereof  convicted  within  one  month 
after  the  offense  committed. 

And  it  is  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid,  that  all 
Mayors,  Justices  of  the  Peace,  Head  Officers,  the  Gov- 
ernors of  Inns  of  Court  and  Chancery,  all  masters  and 
Governors  of  schools,  and  families  and  the  governors  of 
the  Company  of  Water-men  for  the  river  of  Thames 
(who  for  the  purposes  in  this  Act  mentioned  shall  have 
the  power  of  Constables  upon  the  said  river,  and  upon 
any  keys,  wharfs  or  banks  thereof)  and  all  other  officers 
and  persons  herein  concerned,  are  hereby  enjoyned  and 
authorized  within  their  several  limits  and  jurisdictions, 
to  see  this  Act  put  in  due  and  speedy  execution,  upon 
pain  that  all  and  every  person  and  persons  neglecting  to 
do  his  and  their  respective  duties,  in  putting  this  Act  in 
due  and  speedy  execution,  being  thereof  duly  convicted 
by  bill,  plaint,  writ  or  action  of  debt,  in  any  Court  of 
Record,  or  upon  presentment,  information  or  indictment 
before  any  Justices  of  the  Peace  in  their  open  Sessions 
(who  have  hereby  power  to  hear  and  determine  the  same) 
shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  five  pounds  ;  one  moyety  where- 
of shall  be  to  the  use  of  His  Highness  the  Lord  Pro- 
tector, and  the  other  moyety  to  him  or  them  that  will 
prosecute  for  the  same. 

And  it  is  hereby  enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid, 
that  no  writ  of  Certiorari  shall  be  granted  or  allowed  for 
the  removing  any  action,  suit  presentment,  information, 
indictment,  or  any  other  proceedings  against  any  person 
for  offending  against  this  law ;  and  that  in  any  action 
brought  against  any  Justice  of  Peace,  Churchwardens, 
Overseers  of  the  Poor,  Constables,  or  any  other  officers 
or  persons  whatsoever,  for  acting  or  doing,  or  command- 
ing to  be  acted  or  done,  any  matter  or  thing  in  pursu- 


140  Stmday  Legislation. 

ance  of  this  Act,  or  for  being  aiding  or  assisting  there- 
unto, the  defendant  in  every  such  action  shall  and  may 
plead  the  general  issue,  and  give  the  special  matter  in 
evidence,  and  upon  Non  suit  of  the  Plaintiff,  or  verdict 
passing  for  the  Defendant,  the  Defendant  shall  have  and 
recover  his  and  their  treble  costs. 

And  it  is  lastly  enacted,  that  the  Churchwardens  or 
other  officers  of  every  parish  within  this  Commonwealth, 
do  at  the  charge  of  the  Parish  procure  one  or  more  of 
these  acts  to  be  safely  kept  in  their  respective  parishes  ; 
and  the  ministers  of  each  Parish  are  hereby  enjoyned  in 
every  year,  that  is  to  say,  upon  the  first  Lord's-day  in 
March  yearly,  immediately  before  the  morning  sermon 
to  read,  or  cause  to  be  read,  this  present  Act. 

Provided,  that  this  act  shall  not  extend  to  authorize 
or  impower  any  constables  or  officer,  without  the  special 
warrant  of  one  or  more  Justice  or  Justices  of  the  Peace, 
to  enter,  or  demand  entrance  into  any  house  upon  pre- 
tence of  execution  of  his  or  their  office  by  virtue  of  this 
act,  other  than  into  taverns,  inns,  ale-houses,  tobacco 
shops,  victualling-houses,  or  tippling-houses,  anything  in 
this  Act  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

Enacted  by  the  Parliament  commencing  17  Sept., 
1656.  Scobell's  "Acts  of  Cromwell,"  pp. 
438-443- 


Sunday  in  the  ''  Directory." 

The  *'  Directory  for  Public  Pra3'ers,  Reading 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures,"  etc.,  Avhich  was  adopted 
by  the  Puritan  Parliament  in  1644,  speaks  of  the 
sanctification  of  the  Lord's  day,  as  follows: 


Durmg  the  Puritan  Sicpi^anacy,     141 

The  Lord's  day  ought  to  be  so  remembered  before- 
hand, as  that  all  worldly  business  of  our  ordinary  call- 
ings may  be  so  ordered,  and  so  timely  and  seasonably 
laid  aside,  as  they  may  not  be  impediments  to  the  due 
sanctifying  of  the  day  when  it  comes. 

The  whole  day  is  to  be  celebrated  as  holy  to  the 
Lord,  both  in  public  and  in  private,  as  being  the  Chris- 
tian Sabbath,  to  which  ends  it  is  requisite  that  there  be 
a  holy  cessation  or  resting  all  the  day,  from  all  unneces- 
sary labor,  and  an  abstaining  not  only  from  all  sports  and 
pastimes,  but  also  from  all  worldly  words  and  thoughts. 

That  the  diet  on  that  day  be  so  ordered  as  that 
neither  servants  be  unnecessarily  detained  from  the  pub- 
lic worship  of  God,  nor  any  other  persons  hindered  from 
sanctifying  that  day. 

That  there  be  private  preparation  of  every  person 
and  family  by  prayer  for  themselves,  for  God's  assistance 
of  the  minister,  and  for  a  blessing  upon  the  ministry, 
and  by  such  other  holy  exercises  as  may  further  dispose 
them  to  a  more  comfortable  communion  with  God  in  his 
public  ordinances. 

That  all  the  people  meet  so  timely  for  public  worship 
that  the  whole  congregation  may  be  present  at  the  be- 
ginning, and  with  one  heart  solemnly  join  together  in  all 
parts  of  the  public  worship,  and  not  depart  till  after  the 
blessing. 

That  what  time  is  vacant,  between  or  after  the  solemn 
meetings  of  the  congregation  in  public,  be  spent  in  read- 
ing, meditation,  repetition  of  services  (especially  by  call- 
ing their  families  to  an  account  of  what  they  have  heard 
and  catechising  of  them),  holy  conferences,  prayer  for  a 
blessing  upon  the  public  ordinances,  singing  of  Psalms, 
visiting  the  sick,  relieving  the  poor,  and  such  like  duties 


142  Sunday  Legislatioii. 

of  piety,  chanty,  and  mercy,  accounting  the  Sabbath  a 

delight. 

Scobell's  "  Acts  of  Cromwell,"  p.  86. 

From  such  a  Directory  sprung  the  forms  of 
Sunday  observance,  which  prevailed  in  New 
Eno^land  in  the  earlier  times. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

EARLY  SUNDAY  LAWS  OF  SCOTLAND  ;  LAW  OF 
HOLLAND;  EARLY  SUNDAY  IN  IRELAND  AND 
WALES. 

The  following  is  a  complete  list  of  the  Sun- 
day laws  enacted  in  Scotland  between  1424  and 
1672  A.  D.  They  cover  the  period  of  transition 
from  the  cultus  of  Romanism  to  that  of  Protestant- 
ism. Popery  was  legally  abolished  in  Scotland 
in  1560,  and  Presbyterianism  was  established  in 
1690.  An  examination  of  the  Acts  of  the  Kirk 
shows  that  the  Sunday  laws  were  but  lightly 
esteemed.  It  shows  also  that  the  civil  legislation 
was  prompted  by  the  religious  sentiment,  and  that 
the  laws  embodied  the  theories  of  the  leaders  in 
the  Church,  although  they  were  little  regarded 
by  the  people.  We  add  certain  utterances  of  the 
Assembly  that  the  reader  may  compare  them  with 
the  civil  laws.  The  text  of  the  earlier  laws  has 
been  modernized,  without  departing  wholly  from 
the  oriofinal  arransfement  of  the  sentences.  The 
original  contains  many  words  which  are  unintel- 
ligible to  the  reader  of  to-day : 


144  Sunday  Legislation. 

The  following  laws  are  from  a  volume  entitled 
*'  Laws  and  Acts  of  Parliament,  etc.,  of  Scotland." 
Edinburgh,  1681 : 

Item.  That  all  men  train  themselves  to  be  archers, 
from  they  be  twelve  years  of  age,  and  that  in  each  ten 
pounds'  worth  of  land  there  be  made  bow  marks,  and 
specially  near  to  parish  churches,  wherein  upon  holy 
days  men  may  come,  and  at  the  least  shoot  thrice  about, 
and  have  usage  of  archery,  and  whosoever  use  not  the 
said  archery,  the  lord  of  the  land  shall  raise  of  him  a 
wedder  (a  sheep)  ;  and  if  the  lord  raise  not  the  said 
pain,  the  King's  sheriff  or  his  ministers  shall  raise  it  to 
the  King. 

"  First  Parliament  of  King  James  I,"  1424  a.  d., 
law  18. 

Item,  Because  of  keeping  of  holy  days  and  divine 
service,  which  are  greatly  broken,  and  namely,  in  the 
collection  of  customs  and  annual  rents,  in-casting  and 
out-casting  of  tenants,  which  cause  great  dissension,  and 
causes  ofttimes  great  gatherings  and  discord  upon  sol- 
emn days  of  Whit-Sunday  and  Martin-mas ;  for  the  es- 
chewing of  the  which,  it  is  thought  expedient  in  this 
present  Parliament,  that  the  said  collecting  of  customs 
and  annual  rents,  in-casting  and  out-casting  of  tenants, 
be  deferred  to  the  third  day  after  Whit-Sunday  and 
Martin-mas,  without  prejudice  of  any  persons,  and  in 
likewise  there  be  no  fairs  holden  on  holy  days,  but  on 
the  morning  after. 

*'  Fifth  Parliament  of  King  James  III,"  1469  a.  d., 
chap.  XXXV. 

Item.  It  is  enacted  and  ordained  that  there  be  no 
markets  nor  fairs  holden  upon  holy  days,  nor  yet  within 


Early  Sunday  Laws  of  Scotland,     145 

churches,  nor  church-yards,  upon  holy  days,  nor  other 
days,  upon  the  pain  of  forfeiture  of  the  goods. 

"  Sixth    ParHament   of   King   James    IV,"    1503 
A.  D.,  chap.  Ixxxiii. 

Item.  For  inasmuch  as  it  is  enacted  and  ordained 
by  a  good  and  godly  Act,  made  in  the  days  of  King 
James  IV,  our  Sovereign  Lord's  grandfather,  of  worthy 
memory,  that  there  be  no  markets  nor  fairs  holderi  upon 
holy  days,  nor  yet  within  churches  or  church-yards  upon 
holy  days  or  other  days,  under  pain  of  forfeiting  of  the 
goods ;  which  Act  our  Sovereign  Lord  and  his  three  es- 
tates ratifies  and  approves  and  ordains  the  same  to  have 
effect  and  execution  in  time  coming.  And  seeing  that 
the  Sabbath  day  is  now  commonly  violated  and  broken, 
as  well  within  burghs  as  in  the  country,  to  the  great  dis- 
honor of  God,  by  holding  and  keeping  of  the  said  mar- 
kets and  fairs  on  Sabbath  days,  using  of  hand-labor,  and 
working  thereon,  as  on  the  remaining  days  of  the  week, 
and  by  gaming  and  playing,  passing  to  taverns  and  ale- 
houses, and  the  wilfull  remaining  from  their  parish 
church  in  time  of  sermon  or  prayers  on  the  Sabbath ; 
Therefore,  his  Majesty,  and  his  three  estates,  in  this 
present  Parliament  enact  and  ordain,  that  there  be  no 
markets  nor  fairs  holden  upon  the  Sabbath  day,  nor  yet 
within  churches  or  church-yards,  that  day  or  any  other 
day,  under  the  pain  of  forfeiture  of  the  goods  to  the  use 
of  the  poor  within  the  parish.  And  likewise,  that  no 
hand-laboring,  nor  working  be  used  on  the  Sabbath  day, 
nor  no  gaming  and  playing,  passing  to  taverns  and  ale- 
houses, or  selling  of  meat  or  drink,  or  wilfull  remaining 
from  their  parish  church  in  the  times  of  sermon  or  prayers 
on  the  Sabbath  day  be  used,  under  the  pains  following  : 


146  Sunday  Legislation. 

that  is  to  say,  of  every  person,  for  the  hand-laboring  and 
working,  commonly  used  by  the  poorest  sort,  ten  shill- 
ings, and  for  gaming,  playing,  passing  to  taverns  and 
ale-houses,  selling  of  meat  and  drink,  and  wilfuU  re- 
maining from  their  parish  church  in  time  of  sermon  or 
prayers  on  the  Sabbath  day,  of  every  person  twenty 
shillings,  to  be  applied  to  the  help  and  relief  of  the  poor 
of  the  parish.  And  in  case  of  the  refusal,  or  inability  of 
any  person  offending  in  the  premises,  to  pay  the  said 
pains  respectively,  presently,  and  promptly,  upon  their 
apprehension  or  conviction,  after  lawful  trial,  he  or  she 
shall  be  put  and  holden  in  the  stocks,  or  such  other  en- 
gine devised  for  public  punishment,  for  the  space  of 
twenty-four  hours.  And  for  execution  hereof,  the  King's 
Majesty's  commission  of  Justice  shall  be  granted  to 
some  person  in  every  parish,  best  fitted  and  able  to  per- 
form the  same,  at  the  request  of  the  minister. 

''  Sixth  Parliament  of  King  James  VI,"  1579  A.  d., 
chap.  Ixx. 

Our  Sovereign  Lord  and  estates  of  this  present  Par- 
liament decree  and  declare  that  it  shall  be  allowed  to  all 
towns  and  parishes  to  landward,  where  markets  of  be- 
fore were  kept  and  holden  upon  the  Sabbath  day  (being 
now  prohibited  by  the  law  of  God,  and  the  laws  of  this 
Realm,  so  tp  continue),  to  elect  and  choose  any  other 
day  in  the  week,  for  holding  the  said  markets,  within  the 
said  towns,  and  at  landward  churches,  where  they  were 
accustomed  to  have  markets  of  before  (not  being  the 
market-day  of  the  next  burgh)  ;  and  there  to  buy  and 
sell  food,  and  such  other  commodities  as  were  used  upon 
the  Sabbath  day,  without  stop  or  impediment ;  always 
without  prejudice  of  the  right  and  liberty  of  his  High- 


Early  Sunday  Laws  of  Scotland,     147 

ness's  free  boroughs.    And  that  letters  be  directed  there- 
upon, if  need  be,  in  form  as  aforesaid. 

''Twelfth  Parliament  of  King  James  VI,"  1592 
A.  D.,  chap,  cxxii. 

Our  Sovereign  Lord,  with  the  advice  of  the  estates 
of  this  present  Parliament,  ratifies  and  approves  the  Acts 
made  concerning  the  discharging  of  fairs  and  markets, 
holden  on  the  Sabbath  days;  and  because  the  same 
Acts,  in  many  respects,  are  in  no  v/ay  observed  in  land- 
ward ;  Therefore^  his  Majesty,  with  the  advice  afore- 
said, expressly  commands  and  charges  all  Sheriffs,  Stew- 
ards, Bailies,  Provosts,  and  Bailies  of  boroughs,  and  all 
others  whom  it  shall  please  every  particular  Presbytery 
to  nominate,  within  their  own  bounds,  to  that  effect,  to 
discharge,  remove,  and  put  away  all  fairs  and  markets, 
holden  on  Sabbath  days,  as  they  will  answer  to  his 
Majesty;  and  in  case  they  be  found  negligent,  ordains 
letters  of  horning  upon  a  simple  charge  of  ten  days  to 
be  directed,  to  charge  them  thereto,  at  the  instance  of 
the  said  Presbytery. 

"  Thirteenth  Parliament  of  James  VI,"  1593  a.  d., 
chap.  clix. 

Our  Sovereign  Lord,  understanding  that  by  an  act 
and  ordinance  made  concerning  observance  of  the  Sab- 
bath day,  within  this  realm,  the  market-day  of  the 
burgh  of  Forfare,  being  the  head  burgh  of  the  Shire, 
which  was  Sunday,  is  taken  from  them ;  and  his  High- 
ness not  willing  that  they  in  any  way  should  be  preju- 
diced hereby  ;  Therefore,  his  Highness,  with  advice  of 
the  estates  of  this  present  Parliament,  alters  and  changes 
their  said  market-day  from  Sunday  to  Friday,  and  wills 
the  same  Friday  weekly  to  be  their  market-day  to  them 


148  Sunday  Legislation, 

in  all  times  hereafter ;  and  the  same  to  stand  with  the 
like  privileges  and  freedom  as  the  Sunday  did  of  before. 
"  Thirteenth    Parliament    of    James   VI,"    1593 
A.  D.,  chap,  cxcii. 

Item.  Our  Sovereign  Lord  and  estates  of  this  pres- 
ent Parliament  ratify  and  approve  the  Acts  made  by  his 
Highness  of  before,  concerning  the  discharging  of 
holding  of  markets  upon  the  Sabbath  day,  with  this  ad- 
dition :  That  whosoever  profanes  the  Sabbath  day  by 
selling,  or  presenting,  or  offering  to  be  sold  upon  the 
said  day,  any  goods  or  gear,  or  whatsoever  merchan- 
dise by  themselves  or  any  other  in  their  name,  and  is 
three  several  times  lawfully  convicted  thereof,  either 
before  the  provost  and  bailies  within  the  burgh,  where 
the  profanation  shall  happen  to  be  committed,  or  before 
certain  commissioners  and  justices  in  every  Presbytery, 
to  be  appointed  by  the  King's  Majesty,  with  advice  of 
his  privy  council,  their  whole  goods  and  gear  shall  be 
forfeited  to  his  Majesty's  use,  and  their  persons  punished 
at  the  will  of  his  Majesty,  with  advice  of  his  secret 
council. 

"  Fourteenth  Parliament  of  James  VI,"  1594  a.  d., 
chap,  cxcviii. 

The  King's  Majesty,  considering  how  much  it  con- 
cerns the  honor  of  God  that  the  Sabbath  day  be  duly 
observed,  and  all  abuses  thereof  restrained,  and  that 
notwithstanding  of  several  Acts  of  Parliament,  made  in 
that  behalf,  particularly  the  third  Act  of  the  Sixth  Par- 
liament of  King  James  VI,  of  blessed  memory,  the  said 
day  has  been  much  profaned  by  salmon-fishing,  running 
of  salt-pans,  mills,  and  kilns,  hiring  of  shearers,  and 
using   of  merchandise    on    that   day,  and    other  ways. 


Early  Sunday  Laws  of  Scotland,     149 

Therefore,  our  Sovereign  Lord,  with  advice  and  consent 
of  his  estates  of  Parliament,  ratifies  and  approves  all 
former  Acts  of  Parliament,  made  for  observation  of  the 
Sabbath  day,  and  against  the  breakers  thereof ;  and  by 
these  presents  inhibits  and  discharges  all  salmon-fishing, 
running  of  salt-pans,  mills,  and  kilns,  all  hiring  of 
shearers,  carrying  of  loads,  keeping  of  markets,  or  using 
any  sorts  of  merchandise  on  the  said  day,  and  all  other 
profanation  thereof  whatsoever,  under  the  pains  and 
penalties  following,  viz.  :  The  sum  of  twenty  pounds 
Scots  for  the  running  of  each  salt-pan,  mill,  or  kiln 
on  the  said  day,  to  be  paid  by  the  heritors  and  pos- 
sessors thereof,  and  the  sum  of  ten  pounds  for  each 
shearer  and  fisher  of  salmon,  on  the  said  day,  the  one 
half  thereof  to  be  paid  by  the  hirers  and  conductors, 
and  the  other  half  by  the  persons  hired ;  and  the  said 
sum  of  ten  pounds  for  every  other  profanation  of  the 
said  day;  and  which  fines  and  penalties  are  to  be  up- 
lifted and  disposed  of,  in  manner  contained  in  the  Act 
and  instructions  concerning  the  justices  of  peace  ;  and 
if  the  party  offending  be  not  able  to  pay  the  penalties 
aforesaid,  then  to  be  exemplarily  punished  in  his  body, 
according  to  the  merit  of  his  fault. 

"The  First  Parliament  of  Charles  11/'  1661  A.  d., 
chap,  xviii. 

In  1870  the  Dundee  High  Court  decided  that 
the  foregoing  law  of  1661  was  still  in  force. 

Our  Sovereign  Lord  considering  that  there  is  much 
occasion  given  for  profanation  of  the  Lord's  day  in  the 
royal  burghs,  by  keeping  their  weekly  markets  on  Monday 
and  Saturday,  and  that  the  same  may  be  as  conveniently 


150  Sunday  Leislation. 

kept  on  other  days  of  the  week,  doth  therefore,  with  ad- 
vice and  consent  of  his  estates  in  Parliament,  inhibit  and 
discharge  all  the  royal  burghs  from  keeping  any  market 
in  time  coming,  upon  Monday  or  Saturday,  under  the 
pain  of  one  hundred  marks,  to  be  paid  by  each  of  the 
Royal  Burghs  for  every  contravention  respective  ;  and 
allows  them  to  change  and  keep  their  markets  on  other 
days  of  the  week  as  they  have  done  formerly,  since  the 
year  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  forty-four,  and  that 
they  make  timely  intimation  of  the  change  to  the  next 
adjacent  burghs.  It  being  always  declared  that  this  Act 
is  not  to  be  extended  against  fleshers  in  royal  burghs, 
who  may  keep  market  of  fleshes  in  their  respective 
burghs  upon  these  days,  this  Act  notwithstanding. 

''The  Third  Session  of  the  First. Parliament  of 
Charles  II,"  1663  a.  d,,  chap.  xix. 

At  the  second  session  of  the  Second  Parlia- 
ment of  Charles  II,  on  the  nth  of  September, 
1672,  a  general  law  was  passed  against  "  all  viola- 
tions of  the  law  of  God,  and  the  laws  of  this  king- 
dom." This  law  included  ''  drunkenness,  unclean- 
ness,  profanation  of  the  Lord's  day,  mocking  or 
the  reproaching  of  religion  and  the  exercises 
thereof."  It  orders  the  execution  of  all  previous 
acts  against  these  different  forms  of  wrong-doing. 
It  gives  additional  power  to  the  officers  of  the 
Church  for  the  punishment  of  offenders.  It  also 
makes  provision  for  imposing,  collecting,  and  dis- 
tributing heavy  fines  ;  it  is,  in  a  word,  a  general  re- 
vival of  all  civil  laws  against  the  violators  of  the 
ten  commandments.    He  who  is  curious  to  analyze 


Early  Sunday  Laws  of  Scotland,     151 

the  laws  just  given  will  be  able  to  note  the  prog- 
ress from  the  early  Romish  ideas  of  Sunday,  as 
a  holiday,  wherein  religious  services  and  sports 
were  combined  by  law,  to  the  excessive  Puritan 
idea,  wherein  Sunday  was  rigidly  observed  after 
the  strictest  Jewish  interpretation  of  the  Fourth 
Commandment.  Covering,  as  they  do,  a  period  of 
about  two  hundred  and  fifty  years,  these  laws  are 
at  once  a  commentary,  and  a  history  of  the  devel- 
opment of  the  Sabbatic  ideas  of  the  Scotch  people. 
In  modern  times  the  Sunday  has  been  more  highly 
respected  in  Scotland  than  in  England,  and  the 
moral  influence  of  the  Church  in  its  favor  has  been 
stronger ;  but  the  observance  of  the  day  has  been 
attended  with  greater  formality  and  superstition. 
In  common  with  the  rest  of  Europe,  this  tendency 
is  constantly  declining,  and  the  Scotch  Sunday  of 
other  days  is  already  among  the  things  of  the 
past.  The  following  are  the  acts  of  the  Assem- 
bly of  the  Kirk,  referred  to  at  the  opening  of  this 
chapter. 

At  a  session  of  the  Assembly,  held  August  12, 
1590  A.  D.,  the  following  record  was  made: 

According  to  the  direction  of  the  Kirk,  for  restrain- 
ing of  the  merchants,  and  profanation  of  the  Sabbath 
day,  within  Edinburgh,  by  running  of  their  mills,  receiv- 
ing of  loads  within  their  gates,  selling  of  flour  and  pro- 
duce, and  such  other  violation  of  the  said  day  ;  the  Bail- 
ies of  the  said  Burgh  having  direction  from  the  Council, 
let  it  be  declared  that  the  mind  of  the  Council  is,  not- 
withstanding whatsoever  difficulties,  to  do  what  may  lie 


152  Stmday  Legislation. 

in  their  power  for  removing  thereof,  that  all  the  rest  of 
the  Burghs  shall  take  no  slander  by  them. 

*'  Acts  and  Proceedings  of  the  Kirk  of  Scotland," 
vol.  ii,  pp.  776,  777,  quarto,  Edinburgh,  1840. 

The  General  Assembly,  in  1602  A.  D.,  put  forth 
the  following : 

The  Assembly,  considering  that  the  convocations  of 
the  people,  especially  on  the  Sabbath  day,  are  very  rare 
in  many  places,  especially  by  distraction  of  labor,  not 
only  in  harvest  and  seed  time,  but  also  every  Sabbath,  by 
fishing,  both  of  white  fish  and  of  salmon  fishing,  and  by 
the  running  of  mills  ;  the  Assembly  puts  an  end  to,  and 
prohibits,  all  such  labor  of  fishing,  v/hite  fish  as  well  as 
salmon,  and  the  running  of  mills  of  all  sorts,  upon  the 
Sabbath  day,  under  pain  of  incurring  the  censure  of  the 
Kirk  ;  and  it  ordains  the  commissioners  of  this  present 
Assembly  to  signify  the  same  to  his  Majesty,  and  to  de- 
sire that  a  pecuniary  penalty  may  be  enjoined  upon 
those  who  disregard  this  present  Act. 

Ibid.^  vol.  iii,  p.  996,  Edinburgh,  1845. 

Scotch  legislation  did  not  stop  with  Sunday. 
In  1693  and  1695  Parliament  passed  severe  laws 
enforcing  the  observance  of  legal  fast-days.  The 
penalties  attached  were  greater  than  those  for 
violation  of  Sunday.  These  laws  are  still  in  force. 
(See  "  Laws  and  Regulations  of  the  Church  of 
Scotland,  from  1560  to  1850  A.  D.,"  p.  336,  Aber- 
deen, 1853.) 

The  formal  union  of  Scotland  and  England 
took  place  in  1707,  and  there  is  no  demand  for 


Sunday  Law  in  Holland,  153 

tracing  the  Sunday  legislation  of  the  two  coun- 
tries separately,  further  than  is  done  in  this 
chapter. 

Sunday  Law  in  Holland. 

We  are  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  the  trans- 
lator named  below  for  the  ability  to  place  the 
present  Sunday  law  of  Holland  before  our  read- 
ers. Since  this  translation  Avas  made,  an  agitation 
has  arisen  concerning  the  revision  of  the  follow- 
ing law  which  has  been  on  the  statutes — mainl}^  a 
"dead  letter" — for  more  than  seventy  3^ ears  : 

(Translated  from  the  Dutch,  by  Rev.  G.  Velthuysen, 
Haarlem,  Holland.) 

A  Copy  of  the  Law,  containing  precepts  for  the  cele- 
bration of  the  days  of  the  public  Christian  Religions, 
enacted,  March  i,  1815.     No.  18. 

We  William,  by  the  grace  of  God,  King  of  the  Neth- 
erlands, etc.,  etc.,  etc. 

To  all  who  will  read  and  hear  this.     Salute  ! 

Whereas,  we  have  taken  into  consideration  the  neces- 
sity to  assure,  after  the  example  of  our  pious  forefathers, 
who  always  put  the  highest  value  on  it — the  dutiful  ob- 
servation of  the  Lord's  day,  and  of  other  days,  conse- 
crated to  the  public  Christian  worship,  by  means  that 
are  unanimous  and  of  general  effect  through  the  whole 
extent  of  the  United  Netherlands ; 

So  it  is,  that  we,  having  heard  the  Council  of  State, 
and  in  common  deliberation  with  the  States  General  of 
these  countries,  did  approve  and  understand,  as  we  do 
approve  and  understand  by  the  following  : 


154  Sunday  Legislation, 

I.  That  on  Sunday  and  such  religious  feast-days,  as 
by  the  communities  of  the  Christian  faith  of  those  coun- 
tries generally  are  acknowledged  and  celebrated,  not 
only  all  kind  of  business  or  trade,  such  as  divine  service 
might  be  disturbed  by,  shall  be  prohibited,  but  that  gen- 
erally no  public  labor  will  be  tolerated,  save  in  case  of 
necessity  ;  in  which  case  the  local  magistrate  has  to  give 
a  written  consent. 

II.  That  on  these  days  it  will  be  not  allowed  to  ex- 
pose for  sale  or  to  sell  in  markets,  streets,  or  public 
squares,  any  merchandises,  whatever,  except  small  eat- 
ing-wares; and  that  merchants  and  storekeepers  are 
neither  permitted  to  exhibit  these  wares,  nor  to  sell  with 
open  doors. 

III.  That  during  the  time  destined  for  public  serv- 
ice, the  doors  of  the  inns  and  other  places  where  drinks 
are  sold,  as  far  as  those  places  are  lying  within  the  com- 
pass of  the  buildings,  are  to  be  closed  ;  and  that  also 
during  the  same  time  it  will  be  not  allowed  to  play  at 
kolf,  to  toss  the  ball,  or  such  kind  of  plays. 

IV.  That  on  the  Sundays  and  general  feast-days  no 
public  divertisements,  such  as  theatres,  public  balls, 
concerts,  or  horse-races,  will  be  tolerated ;  however,  to 
the  local  government  it  will  be  left  to  make  exception, 
but  never  before  the  full  close  of  all  divine  services. 

V.  That  the  local  police  has  to  take  care,  in  order  to 
prevent  or  to  cause  to  be  ceased  all  disturbing  move- 
ment and  noise  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  buildings 
destined  for  public  worship  ;  and  generally  all  that  would 
disturb  divine  service. 

VI.  That  the  transgressors  against  the  decrees  of 
this  resolution  shall  be  punished,  in  prop'ortion  to  per- 
sons and  circumstances,  by  a  fine  of   not   more  than 


Sunday  in  I7' eland,  155 

twenty-five  guilder  or,  for  the  transgressors  who  are  un- 
able to  pay  this  fine,  by  an  imprisonment  of  not  longer 
than  three  days. 

VII.  That  in  case  of  a  second  transgression  the  fine 
or  the  imprisonment  shall  be  doubled,  and  further,  all 
the  goods  that  have  been  laid  down  or  exhibited  for 
sale  will  be  confiscated,  and  the  inns  and  other  public 
localities  must  be  closed  during  a  month. 

And  that  by  these  general  ordinances  all  provincial 
or  local  regulations  or  institutions  are  to  be  considered 
as  abolished. 

Ordering  and  commanding  that  this  law  will  be  in- 
serted in  the  Paper  of  State,  and  that  a  sufficient  number 
of  copies  must  be  printed  and — according  to  Art.  56th 
of  the  Fundamental  Law — sent  for  execution  to  the  dif- 
ferent Provinces  or  Districts,  under  obligation  to  make 
them  public  everywhere  and  to  stick  them  on,  as  well  as 
to  cause  them  to  be  proclaimed  in  the  pulpits  of  the  dif- 
ferent Christian  communities. 

Ordering  and  commanding  further  that  our  minis- 
terial departments  and  other  authorities,  justices  and 
officers,  whom  it  concerns,  have  to  maintain  the  strict 
observance,  without  any  connivance  or  dissimulation. 

Given  at  The  Hague,  March  ist  of  the  year  1815,  the 
second  of  Our  Reign. 

[Signed]     William. 

By  order  of  His  Royal  Highness. 

[Signed]     A.  K.  Falck. 

Sunday  in  Ireland. 

Ireland  had  no  civil  Sunday  laws  previous  to 
its  union  with   England,      But  sun-worship  and 


156  Sunday  Legislation, 

the  Sunday  festival  were  both  well  known  to  the 
paganism  of  ancient  Ireland.  This  fact  is  sig- 
nificant, showing  as  it  does  the  character  of  the 
influences  which  corrupted  early  Christianity,  and 
exalted  the  pagan  festival  of  the  sun  over  the 
Sabbath  of  Jehovah.  Ireland  was  colonized  from 
Asia,  probably  by  way  of  Phoenecia.  This  brought 
the  Oriental  sun-worship  cult  westward,  and 
caused  it  to  appear  in  the  earliest  history  of  Ire- 
land.    D'Alton  says : 

The  cromlechs,  the  upright  pillars,  the  circular  tem- 
ples of  stone,  the  round  towers,  the  sacred  fire,  the  holy 
groves,  the  venerated  fountains,  which  were  dedicated 
to  sun-worship,  still  remain. 

^'  Essay  on  the  History,  Religion,  Learning,  etc., 
of  Ireland,"  by  John  D'Alton,  Esq.,  M.  R.  I. 
A.,  p.  87;  also,  pp.  79-95.  Dublin,  1830.  See 
also  '*  Diodorus  Siculus/'tome  i,  pp.  158,  159. 

Sun-worship  continued  until  the  time  of  St. 
Patrick,  who,  in  his  "  Confessions,"  condemns  it 
in  the  following  words.  Speaking  of  the  time 
when  the  true  worshipers  of  Christ  should  be 
resurrected,  he  says : 

But  all  who  adore  him  (the  sun)  shall  unhappily  fall 
into  eternal  punishment. 

Ware's  "  History  and  Antiquities  of  Ireland," 
vol.  ii,  p.  122,  Dublin,  1764. 

The  ancient  pagan  week  in  Ireland  was  identi- 
cal, in  the  order  and  names  of  the  days,  with  the 


Sunday  in  Ireland.  157 

week  as  now  existing,  and  as  known  throughout 
history  and  the  world.     (See  Ware,  as  above,  p. 

123.) 

The  ancient  Caledonians,  neighbors  and  kin- 
dred to  the  Irish,  were  sun-worshipers,  and  many 
remnants  of  the  sun-worship  cult  are  found  in 
the  Scotch  and  Irish  superstitions  of  the  present 
time.  The  festival  of  Bal-tien  day,  celebrated 
on  the  ist  of  March,  in  honor  of  the  return- 
ing summer  sun,  is  a  notable  example  of  this. 
The  name  itself  is  from  the  Oriental  Baal — the 
sun-god.  There  are  traces  of  the  custom  of  hu- 
man sacrifices  by  fire  in  the  sports  of  the  modern 
boys  of  Scotland  on  that  day.  (See  Wakefield's 
"■  Ireland,"  vol.  ii,  p.  748,  note,  London,  1812). 

The  laws  of  the  ancient  pagan  kings  of  Ire- 
land were  collected  438-441  A.  D.,  under  the  title 
of  Senchus  Mor.  They  contain  no  legislation  con- 
cerning Sunday,  but  certain  facts  appear  which 
show  that  the  Sunday  was  a  prominent  festival 
before  the  introduction  of  Christianity.  There 
was  a  system  of  fosterage  by  which  certain  youths 
were  trained  for  service  in  the  state  for  possible 
or  actual  chieftainship.  A  general  {Cahi)  law  re- 
quired that  such  wards  of  the  state  should  have 
better  clothing  and  better  food  on  Sundays  than 
on  other  days.  On  ordinary  days  they  had  milk 
with  their  bread,  on  Sunday,  butter.  Grades  of 
clothing,  each  better  than  the  other,  Avere  ordered 
for  week  days,  Sundays,  and  ''  the  festival."  This 
provision  was  for  these  ''foster  children  "  and  for 


158  Sunday  Legislation, 

the  sons  of  chiefs  of  certain  ranks.  It  is  difficult 
to  decide  what  is  meant  by  ''  the  festival."  It  was 
evidently  a  higher  day  than  the  Sunday  of  each 
wxek,  probably  it  was  the  May-day  festival  of 
Bal-ticn  in  honor  of  the  return  of  the  summer  sun. 

The  jolly  festival  character  of  the  pagan  Sun- 
day in  Ireland  is  further  shown  by  the  following 
schedule  of  the  duties  of  an  Irish  king  for  the 
week : 

Sunday,  for  drinking  ale,  for  he  is  not  a  lawful  chief 
who  does  not  distribute  ale  on  Sunday. 

Monday,  for  judgment,  for  the  adjusting  of  the 
people. 

Tuesday,  at  chess. 

Wednesday,  seeing  greyhounds  coursing. 

Thursday,  at  marriage  duties. 

Friday,  at  horse-racing. 

Saturday,  at  giving  judgment. 

"  Ancient  Laws  of  Ireland,"  vol.  iv,  p.  335,  Lon- 
don, 1869.  For  other  facts  referred  to 
above,  see  vol.  ii,  pp.  149  and  177,  and  vol. 
iii,  p.  4i 

English  law  was  first  introduced  in  Ireland  by 
Henry  II,  in  the  twelfth  century,  but  it  was  little 
obeyed  until  after  Henry  VIII,  in  the  sixteenth 
century.  The  old  pagan  {Brehoii)  laws  obtained, 
in  many  instances,  until  after  the  final  overthrow 
of  the  chiefs,  under  Elizabeth,  and  until  Ireland 
was  taken  under  the  direct  control  of  England, 
under  James  I.  Since  that  time  the  Sunday  laws 
of  Ireland  and  England  are  essentially  the  same. 


Sunday  in   Wales,  159 

Sunday  in  Wales. 

There  is  no  trace  of  direct  Sunday  legislation 
in  Wales  previous  to  its  union  with  England  in 
1282  A.  D.  The  history  of  Welsh  jurisprudence 
previous  to  that  time,  shows  that  both  Sunday  and 
Monday  were  dies  non.  This  probably  arose  from 
the  veneration  of  the  sun  and  moon.  So  far  as 
one  can  learn  from  the  history  of  Welsh  legisla- 
tion, these  days  stood  upon  the  same  footing. 
References  showing  this  fact  may  be  found  in  a 
folio  volume  entitled  "  Ancient  Laws  of  Wales," 
which  was  compiled  somewhere  between  16 14 
and  1643  A.  D.,  pp.422,  452,  453,  572,  and  719,  Lon- 
don, 1841. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

SUNDAY     LEGISLATION     IN     AMERICA  —  COLONIAL 
PERIOD. 

About  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  cent- 
ury, certain  dissenters  fled  from  England  to  Hol- 
land. Failing  to  succeed  in  propagating  their 
views  among  the  Hollanders,  and  finding  their 
own  purity  on  the  decline,  they  determined  to  seek 
a  home  in  the  New  World.  They  reached  America 
in  1620,  and  settled  at  New  Plymouth.  In  1629  a 
large  colony  from  England  joined  them.  Thus 
came  the  birth  of  New  England,  and  the  establish- 
ment of  Puritanism  in  America.  The  civil  govern- 
ment which  these  men  adopted  was  the  direct 
outgrowth  of  their  religion.  The  "theocracy" 
of  the  Hebrews  furnished  the  model  after  which 
if^  was  patterned.  The  result  was  more  than  a 
union  of  Church  and  State ;  it  was,  rather,  a  State 
in  the  Church.  Hence,  the  civil  laws  of  those 
times  were  the  practical  expression  of  orthodox 
theology ;  and  the  execution  of  those  laws  was  an 
index  to  the  vitality  and  power  of  the  prevailing 
religion.     It  is  suited  to  the  purposes  of  this  chap- 


In  America — Colonial  Period.        i6i 

ter  to  collect  the  laws  of  the  early  colonists  con- 
cerning Sunday,  and,  as  far  as  may  be  necessary, 
to  sketch  the  history  of  their  execution.  This 
will  be  done  in  the  following  order : 

1.  The  laws  of  the  Plymouth  Colony  up  to  the 
time  of  its  union  with  Massachusetts ;  then  the 
laws  of  Massachusetts  as  a  colony  and  a  province. 

2.  The  laws  of  the  New  Haven  and  Connecticut 
colonies  in  a  similar  order. 

There  were  no  direct  statute  laws  concerninpf 
the  observance  of  Sunday  during  the  earlier  years 
of  the  Plymouth  Colony.  There  was,  however,  a 
rigid  **  common  law,"  founded  on  the  laws  of  the 
Jewish  theocracy.  In  1650,  June  loth,  the  gen- 
eral court  enacted  the  following : 

Further  be  it  enacted,  that  whosoever  shall  profane 
the  Lord's  day  by  doing  any  servile  work,  or  any  such 
like  abuses,  shall  forfeit  for  every  such  default  ten  shil- 
lings, or  be  whipped. 

In  165 1,  June  6th  : 

It  is  enacted  by  the  court  that  whatsoever  person  or 
persons  shall  neglect  the  frequenting  the  public  worship 
of  God  that  is  according  to  God,  in  the  places  where 
they  live,  or  do  assemble  themselves  upon  any  pretense 
whatsoever,  contrary  to  God  and  the  allowance  of  the 
government,  tending  to  the  subversion  of  religion  and 
churches,  or  palpable  profanation  of  God's  holy  ordi- 
nances, being  duly  convicted,  viz.,  every  one  that  is  a 
master  or  dame  of  a  family,  or  any  other  person  at  their 
own  disposing,  to  pay  ten  shillings  for  every  such  default. 
"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  pp.  57,  58. 


1 62  Sunday  Legislation, 

It  is  also 

Enacted  by  the  court,  that  if  any  in  any  lazy,  sloth- 
ful or  profane  way  doth  neglect  to  come  to  the  public 
worship  of  God,  shall  forfeit  for  every  such  default  ten 
shillings,  or  be  publicly  whipped. 

"Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  58. 

In  1658,  we  have  the  following: 

Whereas,  complaint  is  made  of  great  abuses  in  sun- 
dry places  of  this  government  of  profaning  the  Lord's 
day  by  travelers,  both  horse  and  foot,  by  bearing  of 
burdens,  carrying  of  packs,  etc.,  upon  the  Lord's  day,  to 
the  great  offense  of  the  godly,  well-affected  amongst  us  : 
It  is  therefore  enacted  by  the  court,  and  the  authority 
thereof,  that  if  any  person  or  persons  shall  be  found 
transgressing  in  any  of  the  precincts  of  any  township 
within  this  government,  he  or  they  shall  be  forthwith  ap- 
prehended by  the  constable  of  such  town,  and  fined 
twenty  shillings  to  the  colony's  use,  or  else  sit  in  the 
stocks  four  hours,  except  they  can  give  a  sufficient  rea- 
son for  their  so  doing ;  and  they  that  transgress  in  any 
of  the  above  said  particulars,  shall  only  be  apprehended 
on  the  Lord's  day;  and  on  the  second  day  following 
shall  either  pay  their  fine,  or  sit  in  the  stocks  as  afore- 
said. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  100. 

The  general  laws  concerning  attendance  on 
public  worship  passed  in  165 1,  were  repealed  in 
1659,  and  the  following  enacted,  and  repeated  in 
1661: 


In  America — Colonial  Period.        163 

It  is  enacted  by  the  court,  that  whatsoever  person  or 
persons  shall  frequently  absent  or  neglect,  upon  the 
Lord's  day,  the  public  worship  of  God  that  is  approved 
of  by  this  government,  shall  forfeit  for  every  such  default 
ten  shillings. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  122. 

The  following  "Sunday  Excise  Law  "  was  en- 
acted in  1662 : 

Whereas,  complaint  is  made  of  some  ordinary  keep- 
ers, in  this  jurisdiction,  that  they  do  allow  persons  to 
stay  on  the  Lord's  days  drinking  in  their  houses  in  the 
interims  of  times  between  the  exercises,  especially  young 
persons  and  such  as  stand  not  in  need  thereof :  It  is  en- 
acted by  the  court  and  the  authority  thereof,  that  no 
ordinary  keeper  in  this  government,  shall  draw  any  wine 
or  liquor  on  the  Lord's  day,  for  any,  except  in  case  of 
necessity,  for  the  relief  of  those  that  are  sick,  or  faint,  or 
the  like,  for  their  refreshing,  on  the  penalty  of  paying  a 
fine  of  ten  shillings  for  every  default. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  137. 

In  1662  the  court  urges  the  strict  enforcement 
of  the  laws  against  traveling  and  unlawful  meet- 
ings on  Sunday.  ("  Plymouth  Colony  Records," 
vol.  xi,  p.  140.) 

In  1682  the  general  court,  sitting  at  Plymouth, 
enacted  the  following  : 

To  prevent  profanation  of  the  Lord's  day  by  for- 
eigners, or  any  others,  unnecessarily  traveling  through 
our  towns  on  that  day  :  It  is  enacted  by  the  court,  that 
a  fit  man  in  each  town  be  chosen,  unto  whom,  whomsq- 


164  Stcnday  Legislation, 

ever  hath  necessity  cf  travel  on  the  Lord's  day  in  case 
of  danger  of  death  or  such  necessitous  occasions,  shall 
repair,  and  making  out  such  occasions  satisfyingly  to 
him,  shall  receive  a  ticket  from  him  to  pass  on  about 
such  like  occasions,  which  if  the  traveler  attend  not  unto 
it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  constable  or  any  man  that  meets 
him,  to  take  him  up,  and  stop  him  until  he  be  brought 
before  authority,  or  pay  his  fine  for  such  transgression, 
as  by  law  in  that  case  is  provided.  And  if  it  after  shall 
appear  that  his  plea  was  false,  then  may  he  be  appre- 
hended at  another  time,  and  made  to  pay  his  fine  as 
aforesaid. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  258. 

The  same  court  protected  other  days  besides 
Sunda}^  as  follows : 

It  is  enacted  that  none  shall  presume  to  attend  ser- 
vile work  or  labor  or  attend  any  sports  on  such  days  as 
are  or  shall  be  appointed  by  the  court  for  humiliation 
by  fasting  and  prayer,  or  for  public  thanksgiving,  on 
penalty  of  five  shillings. 

"Plymouth   Colony   Records,"   vol.    xi,   p. 
258. 
In  1674 : 

It  is  enacted  by  the  court,  that  as  to  the  restraining 
of  abuses  in  "  ordinaries,"  that  no  ordinary  keeper  shall 
sell  or  give  any  kind  of  drink  to  inhabitants  of  the  town 
upon  the  Lord's  day;  and  also  that  all  ordinary  keepers 
be  required  to  clear  their  houses  of  all  tov/n  dwellers  and 
strangers  that  are  there  (on  a  drinking  account),  except 
such  as  lodge  in  the  house,  by  the  shutting  in  of  the  day- 


In  America — Colonial  Period,         165 

light,  upon  the  forfeiture  of  five  shillings,  the  one  half  to 
the  informer,  and  the  other  half  to  the  town's  use. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  236. 

In  the  year  1665,  the  following  law  w^as  enacted 
against  "  Sleeping  in  Church  "  : 

Whereas,  complaint  is  made  unto  the  court,  of  great 
abus3  in  sundry  towns  of  this  jurisdiction,  by  persons 
there  behaving  themselves  profanely,  by  being  without 
doors  at  the  meeting  house  on  the  Lord's  days  in  time  of 
exercise,  and  there  misdemeaning  themselves  by  jesting, 
sleeping,  or  the  like  :  It  is  enacted  by  the  court  and 
hereby  ordered  that  the  constables  of  each  township  of 
this  jurisdiction  shall,  in  their  respective  towns,  take 
special  notice  of  such  persons,  and  to  admonish  them  ; 
and  if,  notwithstanding,  they  shall  persist  on  in  such 
practices,  that  he  shall  set  them  in  the  stocks,  and  in 
case  this  will  not  reclaim  them,  that  they  return  their 
names  to  the  court. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  214. 

Four  years  later,  July,  1669,  this  law  was 
further  added  to  as  follows : 

It  is  enacted  by  the  court,  that  the  constable  or  his 
deputy  in  each  respective  town  of  this  government,  shall 
diligently  look  after  such  as  sleep  or  play  about  the 
meeting-house  in  times  of  the  public  worship  of  God  on 
the  Lord's  day,  and  take  notice  of  their  names,  and  re- 
turn such  of  them  to  the  court  who  do  not,  after  warn- 
ing given  to  them,  reform. 

As  also  that  unnecessary  violent  riding  on  the  Lord's 
12 


1 66  Sunday  Legislation, 

day ;  the  persons  that  so  offend,  their  names  to  be  re- 
turned to  the  next  court  after  the  said  offense. 

It  is  enacted  by  the  court,  that  any  person  or  persons 
that  shall  be  found  smoking  of  tobacco  on  the  Lord's 
day,  going  to  or  coming  from  the  meetings,  within  two 
miles  of  the  meeting  house,  shall  pay  twelve  pence  for 
every  such  default  to  the  colony's  use. 

"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  pp.  224,  225. 

In  1668  the  matter  of  attendance  on  public 
worship  was  again  taken  up,  and  the  following  law 
enacted : 

Whereas,  the  court  takes  notice  of  great  neglect  of 
frequenting  the  public  worship  of  God  upon  the  Lord's 
day  ;  it  is  enacted  by  the  court  and  the  authority  there- 
of that  the  selectmen  in  each  township  of  this  govern- 
ment shall  take  notice  of  such  in  their  townships  as  neg- 
lect, through  profaneness  and  slothfulness,  to  come  to 
the  public  worship  of  God,  and  shall  require  an  account 
of  them  ;  and  if  they  give  them  not  satisfaction,  that  then 
they  return  their  names  to  the  court. 

"Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  pp.  217,  218. 

This  not  having  the  desired  effect,  the  follow- 
ing was  enacted  in  June,  1670: 

For  the  further  prevention  of  the  profanation  of  the 
Lord's  day,  it  is  enacted  by  the  court  and  the  authority 
thereof,  that  the  selectmen  of  the  several  towns  of  this 
jurisdiction,  or  any  one  of  them,  may,  or  shall,  as  there 
be  occasion,  take  with  him  the  constable  or  his  deputy, 
and  repair  to  any  house  or  place  where  they  may  suspect 
that  any  slothfully  do  lurk  at  home,  or  get  together  in 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        167 

companies,  to  neglect  the  public  worship  of  God,  or  pro- 
fane the  Lord's  day ;  and,  finding  any  such  disorder, 
shall  return  the  names  of  the  persons  to  the  next  court, 
and  give  notice  also  of  any  particular  miscarriage  that 
they  have  taken  notice  of,  that  it  may  be  inquired  into. 
"  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  p.  228. 

In  1652,  and  again  in  1656,  laws  were  passed 
prohibiting  Indians  from  hunting,  working,  or 
playing  on  Sunday,  within  the  limits  of  the  colo- 
ny. ("  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  xi,  pp. 
60,  184.) 

In  1 69 1  Plymouth  became  united  to  Massa- 
chusetts under  a  new  charter,  from  which  time 
their  histories  are  identical. 


Massachusetts  Bay  Colony. 

There  were  no  formal  statutes 
Sunday  by  the  local  authorities  of  this  colony  dur- 
ing the  first  years  of  its  existence.  The  "  first  gen- 
eral letter  "  from  the  governor  and  deputy  of  the 
"  Company  "  in  England,  dated  April  17,  1629,  con- 
tained the  following  instruction : 

And  to  the  end  the  Sabbath  may  be  celebrated  in  a 
religious  manner,  we  appoint  that  all  that  inhabit  the 
plantation,  both  for  the  general  and  particular  employ- 
ments, may  surcease  their  labor  every  Saturday  through- 
out the  year,  at  three  of  the  clock  in  the  afternoon,  and 
that  they  spend  the  rest  of  that  day  in  catechising,  and 


1 68  Sunday  Legislation. 

preparations  for  the  Sabbath,  as  the  ministers  shall  di- 
rect. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  i,  p.  395. 

This  instruction  and  the  "  common  law,"  like 
that  of  the  Plymouth  Colony,  formed  the  basis  of 
the  earliest  customs.  In  the  formation  of  the 
government,  upon  those  points  wherein  the  civil 
authorities  were  in  doubt  concerning  any  ques- 
tion, the  matter  was  referred  to  the  ''  elders." 
Among  the  "■  Answers  of  the  reverend  elders  to 
certain  questions  propounded  to  them,"  Novem- 
ber 13,  1644,  is  the  following: 

The  striking  of  a  neighbor  may  be  punished  with 
some  pecuniary  mulct,  when  the  striking  of  a  father 
may  be  punished  with  death.  So  any  sin  committed 
with  an  high  hand,  as  the  gathering  of  sticks  on  the 
Sabbath-day,  m.ay  be  punished  with  death,  when  a  lesser 
punishment  might  serve  for  gathering  sticks  privily,  and 
in  some  need. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  ii,  p.  93. 

Concerning  this  point,  Hutchinson,  the  histo- 
rian, says : 

In  the  first  draught  of  the  laws  by  Mr.  Cotton,  which 
I  have  seen  corrected  with  Mr.  Winthrop's  hand,  diverse 
other  offenses  were  made  capital,  viz.,  profaning  the 
Lord's  day  in  a  careless  or  scornful  neglect  or  contempt 
thereof.     (Numbers  15  :  30-36.) 

"  History  of  Massachusetts,"  vol.  i,  p.  390. 

On  the  4th  of  November,  1646,  the  general 
court  decreed : 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        169 

That  wheresoever  the  ministry  of  the  Word  is  estab- 
lished, according  to  the  order  of  the  gospel,  throughout 
this  jurisdiction,  every  person  shall  duly  resort  and  at- 
tend thereunto,  respectively,  upon  the  Lord's  days  and 
upon  such  public  fast  days  and  days  of  thanksgiving  as 
are  to  be  generally  held  by  the  appointment  of  author- 
ity. And  if  any  person  within  this  jurisdiction  shall, 
without  just  and  necessary  cause,  withdraw  himself 
from  hearing  the  public  ministry  of  the  Word,  after  due 
means  of  conviction  used,  he  shall  forfeit  for  his  absence 
from  every  such  public  meeting  five  shillings. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  ii,  p.  178. 

Some  questions  have  arisen  concerning-  the 
meaning  of  the  passage  *'  after  due  conviction 
used,"  in  the  above  law,  it  was  explained  May  10, 
1649,  as  meaning  "  legal  conviction."  A  little 
later,  a  general  court,  sitting  at  Boston,  on  the 
30th  of  August,  1653,  enacted  the  following: 

Upon  information  of  sundry  abuses  and  misdemean- 
ors committed  by  several  persons  on  the  Lord's  day, 
not  only  by  children  playing  in  the  streets  and  other 
places,  but  by  youths,  maids  and  other  persons,  both 
strangers  and  others,  uncivilly  walking  the  streets  and 
fields,  traveling  from  town  to  town,  going  on  shipboard, 
frequenting  common  houses  and  other  places  to  drink, 
sport,  and  otherwise  to  misspend  that  precious  time, 
which  things  tend  much  to  the  dishonor  of  God,  the  re- 
proach of  religion,  and  the  profanation  of  his  holy 
Sabbath,  the  sanctification  whereof  is  sometimes  put  for 
all  duties  immediately  respecting  the  service  of  God, 
contained  in  the  first  table  :  It  is  therefore  ordered  by 
this  court  and  the  authority,  that  no  children,  youths. 


170  Sunday  Legislation. 

maids,  or  other  persons,  shall  transgress  in  the  like 
kind,  on  penalty  of  being  reputed  great  provokers  of 
the  high  displeasure  of  Almighty  God,  and  further  in- 
curring the  penalties  hereafter  expressed,  namely,  that 
the  parents  and  governors  of  all  children  above  seven 
years  old,  (not  that  we  approve  of  younger  children  in 
evil,)  for  the  first  offense  in  that  kind,  upon  due  proof 
before  any  magistrate,  own  commissioner,  or  selectman 
of  the  town  where  such  offense  shall  be  committed,  shall 
be  admonished  ;  for  a  second  offense,  upon  due  proof, 
as  aforesaid,  shall  pay  a  fine  of  five  shillings  ;  for  a 
third  offense,  upon  due  proof,  as  aforesaid,  ten  shil- 
lings ;  and  if  they  shall  again  offend  in  this  kind,  they 
shall  be  presented  to  the  county  courts,  who  shall  aug- 
ment punishment,  according  to  the  merit  of  the  fact. 
And  for  all  youths  and  maids,  above  fourteen  years  of 
age,  and  all  elder  persons  whatsoever  that  shall  offend 
and  be  convicted  as  aforesaid,  either  for  playing,  un- 
civilly walking,  drinking,  traveling  from  town  to  town, 
going  on  shipboard,  sporting  or  any  way  misspending 
that  precious  time,  shall,  for  the  first  offense,  be  admon- 
ished, upon  due  proof,  as  aforesaid ;  for  a  second 
offense,  shall  pay  as  a  fine,  five  shillings  ;  and  for  a  third 
offense,  ten  shillings  ;  and  if  any  shall  farther  offend 
that  way,  they  shall  be  presented  to  the  next  county 
court,  who  shall  augment  punishment  according  to  the 
nature  of  the  offense  ;  and  if  any  be  unable  or  unwilling 
to  pay  the  aforesaid  fines,  they  shall  be  whipped  by  the 
constable  not  exceeding  five  stripes  for  ten  shillings  fine  ; 
and  this  to  be  understood  of  such  offenses  as  shall  be 
committed  during  the  daylight  of  the  Lord's  day. 

"  Records   of  Massachusetts   Bay,"  vol.   iii,  pp. 
316,  317. 


I7t  Afnerica — Colonial  Period,        171 

In  volume  iv  another  record  of  this  action  may 
be  found  with  this  addition : 

This  law  is  to  be  transcribed  by  the  constable  of 
each  town,  and  posted  upon  the  meeting-house  door, 
there  to  remain  the  space  of  one  month,  at  least. 

"Records   of   Massachusetts   Bay,"   vol.   iv,   p. 
151. 

On  the  1 8th  of  October  of  the  following  year, 
1654,  a  general  court,  sitting  at  Boston,  enacted 
that— 

Whereas,  experience  gives  us  cause  to  complain  of 
much  disorder  in  time  of  pubHc  ordinances,  in  the  meet- 
inghouses in  several  congregations  in  this  jurisdiction, 
through  the  unreverent  carriage  and  behavior  of  diverse 
young  persons,  and  others,  notwithstanding  the  best 
means  that  have  been  hitherto  used  in  the  said  assem- 
blies, for  the  reformation  thereof,  it  is  therefore  ordered 
by  this  court  and  the  authority  thereof,  that  it  shall  be 
in  the  liberty  of  the  officers  of  the  congregation,  and 
the  selectmen  of  such  towns  together,  to  nominate 
some  one  or  two  meet  persons,  to  reform  all  such  dis- 
ordered persons  as  shall  offend  by  any  misdemeanor, 
either  in  the  congregation  or  elsewhere  near  about  the 
meeting  house,  either  by  serious  reproof,  more  private 
or  more  public,  or  other  the  like  warning  and  meet  cor- 
rection of  the  magistrate  or  commissioners  of  that  town 
judge  meet.  And  we  are  not  doubtful  but  the  reverend 
elders  of  the  several  congregations,  according  to  their 
wisdom,  will  so  order  the  time  of  their  public  exercise, 
that  none  shall  be  ordinarily  occasioned  to  break  off 


172  Sunday  Legislation, 

from   the   congregation  before   the   full   conclusion  of 
public  exercises. 

"  Records  of   Massachusetts   Bay,"  vol.   iv,   pp. 
200,  201. 

At  the  second  session  of  the  general  court  for 
1658,  held  at  Boston  on  the  19th  of  October,  in 
view  of  the  increase  of  Sunday  profanation,  the 
following  action  was  taken  : 

Whereas  by  too  sad  experience  it  is  observed,  the 
sun  being  set,  both  every  Saturday  and  on  the  Lord's 
day,  young  people  and  others  take  liberty  to  walk,  and 
sport  themselves  in  the  streets  or  fields  in  the  several 
towns  of  this  jurisdiction,  to  the  dishonor  of  God  and 
the  disturbance  of  others  in  their  religious  exercises,  and 
too  frequently  repair  to  public  houses  of  entertainment 
and  there  sit  drinking,  all  which  tends,  not  only  to  the 
hindering  of  due  preparation  for  the  Sabbath,  but  as 
much  as  in  them  lies  renders  the  ordinances  of  God  al- 
together unprofitable,  and  threatens  rooting  out  of  the 
power  of  godliness,  and  procuring  the  wrath  and  judg- 
ments of  God  upon  us  and  our  posterity  :  for  the  pre- 
vention whereof  it  is  ordered  by  this  court,  and  the  au- 
thority thereof,  that  if  any  person  or  persons  henceforth, 
either  on  the  Saturday  night  or  Lord's  day  night  after 
the  sun  is  set,  shall  be  found  sporting  in  the  streets  or 
fields  of  any  town  in  this  jurisdiction,  drinking  or  being 
in  any  house  of  entertainment  (unless  strangers  or  so- 
journers, as  in  their  lodgings),  and  can  not  give  a  satis- 
factory reason  to  such  magistrate  or  commissioner  in  the 
several  towns  as  shall  have  the  cognizance  thereof,  every 
such  person  so  found,  complained  of,  and  proved  trans- 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        173 

gressing,  shall  pay  five  shillings  for  every  such  transgres- 
sion, or  suffer  corporal  punishment,  as  authority  afore- 
said shall  determine. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  iv,  part  i, 
P-  347- 

At  a  general  court  called  by  order  of  the  coun- 
cil on  the  1st  of  August,  1665,  and  held  at  Boston 
the  1st  of  August,  the  following  was  enacted: 

This  court  being  sensible  that  through  the  wicked 
practices  of  many  persons  who  do  profane  God's  holy 
Sabbaths,  and  contemn  the  public  worship  of  his  house, 
the  name  of  God  is  greatly  dishonored,  and  the  profes- 
sion of  his  people  here  greatly  scandalized,  as  tending 
to  all  profaneness  and  irreligion,  as  also  that  by  reason 
of  the  late  order  of  Oct.  20th,  1663,  remitting  the  fines 
imposed  on  such  to  the  use  of  the  several  tov/ns,  the 
laws  made  for  reclaiming  such  enormities  are  become 
ineffectual,  do  therefore  order  and  enact,  that  hence- 
forth all  fines  imposed  according  to  law  for  profanation 
of  the  Sabbath,  contempt  or  neglect  of  God's  public  wor- 
ship, reproaching  of  the  laws  and  authority  here  estab- 
lished, according  to  his  Majesty's  charter,  shall  be  to  the 
use  of  the  several  counties  as  formerly,  anything  in  the 
above  said  law  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding ;  and  in 
case  any  person  or  persons  so  sentenced  do  neglect  or 
refuse  to  pay  such  fine  or  mulct  as  shall  be  legally  im- 
posed on  them,  or  give  security  in  court,  to  the  treasurer 
for  payment  thereof,  every  such  person  or  persons,  so 
refusing  or  neglecting  to  submit  to  the  court's  sentence, 
shall  for  such  his  contempt  be  corporally  punished  ac- 
cording as  the  court  that  hath  cognizance  of  the  case 


174  Sunday  Legislation, 

shall  determine,  and  where  any  are  corporally  punished, 
their  fines  shall  be  remitted. 

*'  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  iv,  part  ii, 
p.  276. 

Three  years  later,  October,  1668,  the  general 
court,  sitting  at  Boston,  took  up  this  matter  again, 
and  passed  the  following : 

For  the  better  prevention  of  the  breach  of  the  Sab- 
bath, it  is  enacted  by  this  court  and  the  authority  there- 
of, that  no  servile  work  shall  be  done  on  that  day,  viz., 
such  as  are  not  works  of  piety,  of  charity,  or  of  neces- 
sity ;  and  when  other  works  are  done  on  that  day,  the 
persons  so  doing,  upon  complaint  or  presentment,  being 
legally  convicted  thereof  before  any  magistrate  or  county 
court,  shall  pay  for  the  first  offense  ten  shillings  fine,  and 
for  every  offense  after  to  be  doubled  ;  and,  in  case  the 
offense  herein  be  circumstanced  with  profaneness  or 
high-handed  presumption,  the  penalty  is  to  be  augmented 
at  the  discretion  of  the  judges.  As  an  addition  to  the 
law  for  preventing  profaning  of  the  Sabbath-day  by  do- 
ing servile  work,  this  court  doth  order,  that  whatsoever 
person  in  this  jurisdiction  shall  travel  upon  the  Lord's 
day,  either  on  horseback  or  on  foot,  or  by  boats  from 
or  out  of  their  own  town  to  any  unlawful  assembly  or 
meeting  not  allowed  by  law,  are  hereby  declared  to  be 
profaners  of  the  Sabbath,  and  shall  be  proceeded  against 
as  the  persons  that  profane  the  Lord's  day  by  doing  ser- 
vile work. 

"Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  iv,  part  ii, 
p.  395- 


In  America — Colonial  Period.        175 

At  a  general  court  held  in  Boston  in  1667,  the 
Sunday  laws  were  further  amended  by  an  act  of 
the  24th  of  May,  running  as  follows : 

This  court,  being  desirous  to  prevent  all  occasions  of 
complaint,  referring  to  the  profanation  of  the  Sabbath, 
and  as  an  addition  to  former  laws,  do  order  and  enact, 
that  all  the  laws  for  sanctification  of  the  Sabbath  and 
preventing  the  profaning  thereof,  be  twice  in  the  year, 
viz.,  in  March  and  in  September,  publicly  read  by  the 
minister  or  ministers  on  the  Lord's  day  in  the  several 
respective  assemblies  within  this  jurisdiction,  and  all 
people  by  him  cautioned  to  take  heed  to  the  observance 
thereof.  And  the  selectmen  are  hereby  ordered  to  see 
to  it  that  there  be  one  man  appointed  to  inspect  the  ten 
families  of  his  neighbors,  which  tything  man  or  men 
shall,  and  are  hereby,  have  power  in  the  absence  of  the 
constable,  to  apprehend  all  Sabbath-breakers  and  dis- 
orderly tipplers,  or  such  as  keep  licensed  houses  or 
others  that  shall  suffer  any  disorders  in  their  houses  on 
the  Sabbath  day,  or  evening  after,  or  at  any  other  time, 
and  to  carry  them  before  a  magistrate  or  other  authority, 
or  commit  to  prison  as  any  constable  may  do,  to  be  pro- 
ceeded with  according  to  law. 

And  for  the  better  putting  a  restraint  and  securing 
offenders  that  shall  any  way  transgress  against  the  laws, 
tittle  Sabbath,  either  in  the  meeting  house  by  abusive 
carriage  or  misbehavior,  by  making  any  noise  or  other- 
wise, or  during  the  day  time,  being  laid  hold  on  by  any 
of  the  inhabitants  shall,  by  the  said  person  appointed  to 
inspect  this  law,  be  forthwith  carried  forth  and  put  into 
a  cage  in  Boston,  which  is  appointed  to  be  forthwith  by 
the  selectmen,  to  be  set  up  in  the  market-place  and  in 


176  Sunday  Legislation, 

such  other  towns  as  the  county  courts  shall  appoint, 
there  to  remain  till  authority  shall  examine  the  person 
offending  and  give  order  for  his  punishment,  as  the 
matter  may  require,  according  to  the  laws  relating  to  the 
Sabbath. 

"Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  v,  p.  133. 

The  same  court  made  additional  laws  concern- 
ing Quaker  meetings,  ordering  all  constables,  on 
penalty  of  the  forfeiture  of  forty  shillings,  to 
"  make  diligent  search  "  for  such  gatherings,  es- 
pecially on  the  Lord's  day,  and  if  denied  admit- 
tance, to  break  down  the  doors  and  arrest  the  fre- 
quenters according  to  law.  It  also  ordered  that 
persons  complained  of,  as  being  absent  from  pub- 
lic service  on  Sunday,  who  would  neither  affirm 
that  they  were  present  nor  that  they  were  '*  neces- 
sarily absent  by  the  providence  of  God,"  should  be 
thereupon  adjudged  as  convicted,  and  punished 
accordingly.  (''  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay," 
vol.  V,  p.  134.) 

October  15,  1673,  the  foregoing  laws  were 
amended  as  follows : 

As  an  addition  to  the  law  of  the  Sabbath,  section  the 
second,  it  is  ordered  by  this  court  and  the  authority 
thereof,  besides  the  penalty  upon  the  persons  there  of- 
fending, the  public  house  keeper,  where  any  such  per- 
son or  persons  are  found  so  transgressing  (as  in  the  said 
law  is  expressed),  shall  pay  five  shillings  to  the  treasury 
of  the  country  where  the  offense  is  committed. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  iv,  part  ii, 
p.  562. 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        177 

On  the  loth  of  October,  1677,  the  general  court 
in  session  at  Boston,  made  the  following  additions 
to  this  law : 

As  an  addition  to  the  late  law  made  in  May  last  for  the 
prevention  of  profanation  of  the  Sabbath,  and  strengthen- 
ing of  the  hands  of  tything  men  appointed  to  inspect  the 
same,  it  is  ordered  that  those  tything  men  shall  be  and 
are  hereby  appointed  and  empowered  to  inspect  public 
licensed  houses,  as  well  as  private  and  unlicensed  houses, 
houses  of  entertainment,  as  also  ex-officio  to  enter  any  such 
houses  and  discharge  their  duty  according  to  law ;  and 
the  said  tything  men  are  empowered  to  assist  one 
another  in  their  several  precincts  and  to  act  in  one 
another's  precincts  with  as  full  power  as  in  their  own,  and 
yet  to  retain  their  special  charges  within  their  own 
bounds. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  v,  p.  155^ 

Two  years  later,  October  15,  1679,  the  gen- 
eral court,  at  Boston,  enacted  certain  local  laws, 
of  which  the  following  is  a  representative : 

For  prevention  of  profanation  of  the  Sabbath,  and 
disorders  on  Saturday  night,  by  horses  and  carts  passing 
late  out  of  the  town  of  Boston,  it  is  ordered  and  enacted 
by  this  court,  that  there  be  a  ward,  from  sunset  on  Satur- 
day night,  until  nine  of  the  clock  or  after,  consisting  of 
one  of  the  selectmen  or  constables  of  Boston,  with  two 
or  more  meet  persons,  who  shall  walk  between  the  forti- 
fication and  the  town's  end,  and  upon  no  pretense  what- 
soever suffer  any  cart  to  pass  out  of  the  town  after  sun- 
set, nor  any  footman  or  horseman,  without  such  good 
account  of  the  necessity  of  his  business  as  may  be  to 


178  Su7iday  Legislation, 

their  satisfaction  ;  and  all  persons  attempting  to  ride  or 
drive  out  of  town  after  sunset,  without  such  reasonable 
satisfaction  given,  shall  be  apprehended  and  brought 
before  authority  to  be  proceeded  against  as  Sabbath- 
breakers  ;  and  all  other  towns  are  empowered  to  do  the 
like  as  need  shall  be. 

"  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  v,  p.  239, 
240. 

By  the  same  court,  the  reading  of  the  Sunday 
laws  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  town  clerks, 
to  be  done  at  some  public  meeting  of  the  town, 
instead  of  being  done  by  the  ministers  on  Sunday. 
("  Records  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  vol.  v,  p.  243.) 

Thus  the  laws  stood  with  little  or  no  change 
until  the  new  charter  and  the  provincial  govern- 
ment. 

In  1691,  Massachusetts,  including  Plymouth 
Colony  and  other  territories  lying  north  and  east, 
was  reorganized  under  a  new  charter  from  King 
William  and  Queen  Mary.  The  change  did  not, 
however,  materially  affect  the  status  of  the  Sunday 
laws. 

On  the  22d  of  August,  1695,  a  general  act  was 
passed  which  embodied  the  substance  of  all  the 
former  colonial  laws.  By  this,  all  *'  labor  and 
sporting  "  was  prohibited  under  penalty  of  five 
shillings  fine.  All  ''traveling,"  except  in  cases 
of  great  necessity,  was  punishable  by  a  fine  of 
twenty  shillings.  The  keepers  of  public  houses 
were  forbidden  to  entertain  any  except  travelers 
and   boarders,  on   penalty   of   five  shillings   fine. 


ht  America — Colonial  Period.        179 

Any  one  justice  of  the  peace  was  empowered  to 
try  the  cases,  and  on  his  judgment  to  pass  sen- 
tence, and  the  fines,  if  not  forthcoming",  were  to 
be  collected  by  distraint.  If  the  offender  was  un- 
able to  pay  the  fine,  he  was  to  be  "set  in  the 
stocks,"  or  "  caged,"  not  more  than  three  hours. 
These  acts  were  in  force  from  sunset  on  Saturday, 
until  sunset  on  Sunday.  All  civil  officers  and  par- 
ents were  enjoined  carefully  to  enforce  these  acts. 
(''Acts  and  Law^s  of  the  Province  of  Massachu- 
setts Bay,  from  1692  to  1719,"  folio  edition,  Lon- 
don, 1724,  pp.  15,  16.) 

In  171 1,  this  law  was  added  to,  in  that  twelve 
hours*  imprisonment  was  made  one  of  the  penalties 
of  transgression,  and  constables  were  especially 
empowered  and  instructed  to  labor  diligently  to 
prevent  profanation  of  the  Sunday.  ("  Acts  and 
Laws  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  p. 

Four  years  later,  in  17 16,  avc  find  Sunday  dese- 
cration on  the  increase,  since,  although  many  laws 
have  been  passed,  it  is  said :  "  Many  persons  do 
presume  to  work  and  travel  on  the  said  day  "  ;  so 
that  the  authorities  saw  fit  to  increase  the  penalty 
for  "  working  or  playing "  to  ten  shillings,  and 
that  for  traveling  to  twenty  shillings  for  the  first 
offense.  For  the  second  offense  these  fines  were 
doubled,  and  the  parties  made  to  give  "  sureties  " 
for  good  behavior  in  the  future.  A  month's  con- 
tinued absence  from  the  public  Sunday  services 
was  also  made  finable  in  the  sum  of  twenty  shil- 


i8o  Sunday  Legislation, 

lings,  or  "  three  hours  in  the  stocks,  or  cage." 
("  Acts  and  Laws  of  the  Province  of  Massachu- 
setts Bay,"  p.  328.) 

In  1727,  the  fine  for  ''  working  or  playing"  was 
increased  to  fifteen  shillings,  and  that  for  travel- 
ing to  thirty  shillings  for  the  first  offense,  and  for 
the  second,  three  pounds.  If  the  offender  failed 
to  pay,  he  was  liable  to  the  stocks  or  the  cage  for 
four  hours,  or  to  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail, 
not  to  exceed  five  days.  At  this  time,  also,  funer- 
als, since  they  induced  "great  profanation"  of 
Sunday,  by  the  traveling  of  children  and  servants 
in  the  streets,  were  prohibited,  except  in  extreme 
cases,  and  then  under  license  from  a  civil  officer 
of  the  town.  The  director  of  a  funeral  trans- 
gressing this  was  to  be  fined  forty  shillings,  and 
the  sexton  or  grave-digger  tw^enty  shillings. 
Shops  for  the  retailing  of  strong  drinks  were  also 
to  be  searched  by  the  proper  officers,  and  if  any 
were  found  there  drinking,  the  proprietor  and  the 
drinker  v/ere  each  to  pay  five  shillings.  ("  Acts 
and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts 
Bay,"  vol.  ii,  p.  456.) 

In  1 74 1  an  additional  act  was  passed  against 
slothfully  loitering  in  the  streets  or  fields,  making 
the  penalty  twenty  shillings  for  the  first  offense 
and  forty  for  the  second,  with  costs,  and  imprison- 
ment until  paid.  Appeal  to  the  next  court  was 
allowed.  ("  Acts  and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of 
Massachusetts  Bay,"  p.  1071,  Boston  edition,  1874.) 

In  1760  a  general  amendment  was  made  by  re- 


Ill  America — Colonial  Period.        i8i 

pealing  all  former  laws  relative  to  Sunday,  and 
enacting  a  new  code.  The  reasons  for  repealing 
are  thus  stated : 

Whereas  by  reason  of  different  constructions  of  the 
several  laws  now  in  force  relating  to  the  observation  of 
the  Lord's  day,  or  Christian  Sabbath,  the  said  laws  have 
not  been  duly  executed,  and,  notwithstanding  the  pious 
intention  of  the  legislators,  the  Lord's  day  hath  been 
greatly  and  frequently  profaned,  therefore,  etc. 

The  preamble  to  the  new  law  is  as  follows : 
And  whereas,  it  is  the  duty  of  all  persons,  upon  the 
Lord's  day,  carefully  to  apply  themselves  publicly  and 
privately  to  religion  and  piety,  the  profanation  of  the 
Lord's  day  is  highly  offensive  to  Almighty  God  ;  of  evil 
example,  and  tends  to  the  grief  and  disturbance  of  all 
pious  and  religiously  disposed  persons,  therefore,  etc. 

The  main  features  of  the  new  code  Avere  the 
same  as  those  of  the  former  laws.  The  provisions 
were  these : 

1.  Work  or  plaj^,  on  land  or  water,  is  fined  not 
less  than  ten  nor  more  than  twenty  shillings. 

2.  Traveling  by  any  one  except  in  extremity, 
and  then  only  far  enough  for  immediate  relief,  is 
liable  to  the  same  penalty. 

3.  Licensed  public-house  keepers  are  forbidden 
to  entertain  any  except  "  travelers,  strangers  and 
lodgers  "  in  their  houses  or  about  their  premises, 
for  the  purpose  of  drinking,  playing,  lounging,  or 
doing  any  secular  business  whatever,  on  penalty 
of  ten  shillings  ;  the  person  lounging,  etc.,  also 

13 


1 82  Sunday  Legislation, 

paying  not  less  than  five  shillings.  On  the  second 
conviction,  the  inn-keeper  is  made  to  pay  twenty 
shillings,  and  on  the  third  offense  to  lose  his 
license. 

4.  Loitering,  walking,  or  gathering  in  compa- 
nies in  ''  streets,  fields,  orchards,  lanes,  wharves," 
etc.,  is  prohibited  on  pain  of  five  shillings  fine ; 
and  on  a  second  conviction,  the  offender  is  re- 
quired to  give  bail  for  future  obedience. 

5.  Absence  from  public  service  for  one  month 
is  fined  ten  shillings. 

6.  No  one  is  to  assist  at  any  funeral,  not  even 
to  ring  a  bell,  unless  it  be  a  licensed  funeral,  on 
penalty  of  twenty  shillings  fine.  In  Boston,  how- 
ever, a  funeral  might  be  attended  after  sunset 
without  a  license. 

7.  The  observance  of  the  Sunday  was  to  com- 
mence from  sunset  on  Saturday. 

8.  Twelve  wardens  were  appointed  in  each 
town  to  execute  these  laws ;  these  were  to  look 
after  all  infringements,  enter  all  suspected  places, 
examine  or  inquire  after  all  suspected  persons, 
etc.  In  Boston,  they  were  to  patrol  the  streets 
every  Sunday  (very  stormy  or  cold  days  except- 
ed), and  diligently  watch  and  search  for  offenders. 
In  case  any  one  convicted  on  any  point  in  this 
code  failed  to  pay  his  fine  at  once,  he  was  to  be 
committed  to  the  common  jail,  not  less  than  five, 
nor  more  than  ten  days.  These  laws  were  to  be 
read  at  the  "■  March  meeting  "  of  the  towns  each 
year.    (''  Acts  and  Laws  of  the  Province  of  Massa- 


In  America — Colonial  Period.        183 

chusetts  Bay,"  folio  edition,  pp.  392  to  397,  Bos- 
ton, 1759.) 

In  1 76 1  this  code  was  supplemented  by  another 
act  making  it  five  pounds  fine  to  give  any  false 
answers  to  a  warden,  or  to  refuse  him  aid  or  in- 
formation when  called  upon.  (''  Acts  and  Laws 
of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,"  folio  edi- 
tion, pp.  397,  398.)  These  were  all  carried  over, 
in  essence,  to  the  State  laws. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

SUNDAY     LEGISLATION      IN     AMERICA — COLONIAL 
PERIOD — Continued. 

New  Haven  Colony. 

The  primary  compact  formed  by  the  colonists 
at  New  Haven  shows  that  they  claimed  to  take 
the  Bible  as  their  guide  in  all  things.  The  com- 
mon law,  based  upon  the  Sabbath  laws  of  the 
Jewish  theocracy,  was  the  accepted  authority 
concerning  the  Sunday.  In  December,  1647,  the 
transactions  of  certain  ship-masters  in  the  harbor 
of  New  Haven,  on  Sunday,  brought  the  matter  of 
Sunday  desecration  before  the  civil  court.  The 
offenders,  after  examination,  were  dismissed,  but 
the  case  created  considerable  interest,  and  the 
time  seemed  to  demand  some  definite  legislation. 
Hence,  on  the  31st  of  Januar}^  1647,  the  court 
took  the  following  action  : 

It  was  propounded  to  the  court  to  consider  whether 
it  were  not  meet  to  make  a  law  for  restraining  of  per- 
sons from  their  ordinary  outward  employments  on  any 
part  of  the  Sabbath,  and  the  rather,  because  some  have 


In  Artterica — Colonial  Period.         185 

of  late  taken  too  much  liberty  that  way,  and  have  been 
called  to  answer  for  it  in  the  particular  court.  The 
court,  considering  that  it  is  their  duty  to  do  the  best 
they  can  that  the  law  of  God  may  be  strictly  observed,  did 
therefore  order  that.  Whosoever  shall,  within  this  plan- 
tation, break  the  Sabbath  by  doing  any  of  their  ordinary 
outward  occasions,  from  sunset  to  sunset,  either  upon 
the  land  or  upon  the  water,  extraordinary  cases,  works 
of  mercy  and  necessity  being  excepted,  he  shall  be 
counted  an  offender,  and  shall  suffer  such  punishment 
as  the  particular  court  shall  judge  meet,  according  to 
the  nature  of  his  offense. 

"New   Haven   Colony  and   Plantation  Records, 
from  1638  to  1649,"  p.  358. 

The  "New  Haven  Code,"  published  for  the 
use  of  the  colony  in  1656,  embraces  all  the  general 
laws  which  were  enacted  previous  to  the  union 
between  the  New  Haven  and  Connecticut  colo- 
nies. This  code  contains  the  following,  relative 
to  attendance  on  public  worship : 

And  it  is  further  ordered  that  wheresoever  the  minis- 
try of  the  AVord  is  established  within  this  jurisdiction, 
according  to  the  order  of  the  gospel,  every  person,  ac- 
cording to  the  mind  of  God,  shall  duly  resort  and  attend 
thereunto,  upon  the  Lord's  days,  at  least,  and  also  upon 
days  of  public  fasting  or  thanksgiving  ordered  to  be 
generally  kept  and  observed.  And  if  any  person  within 
this  jurisdiction  shall  without  just  and  necessary  cause, 
absent  or  withdraw  from  the  same,  he  shall,  after  due 
means  of  conviction  used,  for  every  such  sinful  miscar- 


1 86  Sunday  Legislation, 

riage,  forfeit  five  shillings  to  the  plantation,  to  be  levied 
as  other  fines. 

"  New  Haven  Colony  Records,  1 653-1 655,"  p.  58S. 

The  following  statute  on  the  "  Profanation  of 
the  Lord's  day,"  is  worthy  of  careful  notice : 

Whosoever  shall  profane  the  Lord's  day  or  any  part 
of  it,  either  by  sinful  servile  work,  or  by  unlawful  sport, 
recreation,  or  otherwise,  whether  willfully  or  in  a  careless 
neglect,  shall  be  duly  punished  by  fine,  imprisonment,  or 
corporally,  according  to  the  nature  and  measure  of  the 
sin  and  offense.  But  if  the  court  upon  examination, 
by  clear  and  satisfying  evidence,  find  that  the  sin  was 
proudly,  presumptuously,  and  with  a  high  hand,  com- 
mitted against  the  known  command  and  authority  of  the 
blessed  God,  such  a  person  therein  despising  and  re- 
proaching the  Lord,  shall  be  put  to  death,  that  all  oth- 
ers may  fear  and  shun  such  provoking,  rebellious  courses. 
(Numb.  15  :  from  30  to  2>^  verse.) 

"  New  Haven  Colony  Records,  1653-1 655,"  p.  605. 

In  1665,  the  colony  of  New  Haven  was  united 
with  that  of  Connecticut  under  the  latter  name. 
Its  history  will  therefore  be  traced  under  that 
head  from  this  point  forward. 

The  Colony  of  Connecticut. 

Here,  again,  there  were  at  first  no  special  stat- 
utes relative  to  Sunday.  In  1650,  a  general  code 
of  laws  was  established,  in  which  is  the  following 
proviso,  as  a  part  of  the  law  against  burglary  : 


In  A^nerica — Colonial  Period,         187 

And  if  any  person  shall  commit  [such  burglary,  or] 
rob,  in  the  fields  or  houses  on  the  Lord's  day,  beside 
the  former  punishments,  he  shall,  for  the  first  offense, 
have  one  of  his  ears  cut  off;  and  for  the  second  offense 
in  the  same  kind,  he  shall  lose  his  other  ear  in  the  same 
manner,  and  if  he  fall  into  the  same  offense  the  third 
time,  he  shall  be  put  to  death. 

"  Public  Records  of  the  Colony  of  Connecticut 
prior  to  1665,"  p.  514. 

At  a  general  court,  held  September  8,  1653, 
the  following  was  enacted  relative  to  maritime 
matters : 

Whereas,  it  is  observed  that  many  seamen  divers 
times  weigh  anchors  in  the  harbors  of  several  plantations 
within  these  liberties,  and  pass  out  on  the  Lord's  day  to 
the  grief  and  offense  of  the  beholders,  for  the  preventing 
whereof  it  is  ordered  :  That  after  the  pubhshing  this 
order,  no  vessel  shall  depart  out  of  any  harbor  within 
this  jurisdiction,  but  the  master  of  the  boat  or  vessel 
shall  first  give  notice  of  the  occasion  of  his  remove  to 
the  head  officer  of  the  town  next  the  said  harbor  where 
they  so  anchor,  and  obtain  license,  under  the  hand  of 
the  said  officer,  for  his  liberty  therein.  Otherwise  they 
shall  undergo  the  censure  of  the  court. 

"Public  Records  of  the  Colony  of  Connecticut 
prior  to  1665,"  p.  247. 

The  law  relative  to  the  attendance  on  public 
Avorship  is  the  same,  in  essence,  as  those  already 
noticed.     It  is  as  follows : 

It  is  ordered  and  decreed  by  this  court  and  authority 
thereof,  that  wheresoever  the  ministry  of  the  Word  is  es- 


1 88  Sunday  Legislation. 

tablished  according  to  the  order  of  the  gospel,  through- 
out this  jurisdiction,  every  person  shall  duly  resort  and 
attend  thereunto,  respectively  upon  the  Lord's  day  and 
upon  such  public  fast  days  and  days  of  thanksgiving  as 
are  to  be  generally  kept  by  the  appointment  of  authority. 
And  if  any  person  within  this  jurisdiction  shall,  without 
just  and  necessary  cause,  withdraw  himself  from  hearing 
the  public  ministry  of  the  Word,  after  due  means  of  con- 
viction used,  he  shall  forfeit  for  his  absence  from  every 
such  public  meeting  five  shillings,  all  such  offenses  to  be 
heard  and  determined  by  any  one  magistrate  or  more, 
from  time  to  time. 

"  Public  Records  of  the  Colony  of  Connecticut 
prior  to  1665,"  p.  524. 

Two  years  after  the  union  of  the  colonies  of 
New  Haven  and  Connecticut  under  one  govern- 
ment, a  law  was  passed  forbidding  Indians  to  pro- 
fane the  Sunday,  on  penalty  of  five  shillings  fine 
or  one  hour  in  the  stocks. 

On  the  19th  of  May,  1668,  a  general  law  was 
enacted  as  follows  : 

Whereas,  the  sanctification  of  the  Sabbath  is  a  matter 
of  great  concernment  to  the  weal  of  a  people,  and  the 
profanation  thereof  is  that  as  pulls  down  the  judgments 
of  God  upon  that  place  or  people  that  suffer  the  same  : 
It  is  therefore  ordered  by  this  court  and  the  authority 
thereof,  that  if  any  person  shall  profane  the  Sabbath,  by 
unnecessary  travel,  or  playing  thereon  in  the  time  of 
public  worship,  or  before,  or  after,  or  shall  keep  out  of 
the  meeting-house  during  the  public  worship  unneces- 
sarily, there  being  convenient  room  in  the  house,  he  shall 


In  America — Colo7iial  Period,        189 

pay  five  shillings  for  every  such  offense,  or  sit  in  the 
stocks  one  hour  ;  any  one  assistant  or  commissioner  to 
hear  and  determine  any  such  case.  And  the  constables 
in  the  several  plantations  are  hereby  required  to  make 
search  after  all  offenders  against  this  law,  and  make  re- 
turn thereof  to  the  commissioners  or  assistants. 

*' Colonial  Records  of  Connecticut,  1665-1667," 
p.  88. 

In  1676,  the  above  was  strengthened  by  the 
following : 

Whereas,  notwithstanding  former  provisions  made 
for  the  due  sanctification  of  the  Sabbath,  it  is  observed 
that  by  sundry  abuses  the  Sabbath  is  profaned,  the  or- 
dinances rendered  unprofitable,  which  threatens  the 
rooting  out  of  the  power  of  godliness,  and  the  procuring 
of  the  wrath  and  judgments  of  God  upon  us  and  our 
posterity ;  for  prevention  whereof  it  is  ordered  by  this 
court  that  if  any  person  or  persons  henceforth,  either  on 
the  Saturday  night  or  on  the  Lord's  day  night,  though  it 
be  after  the  sun  is  set,  shall  be  found  sporting  in  the 
streets  or  fields  of  any  town  in  this  jurisdiction,  or  be 
drinking  in  houses  of  public  entertainment  or  elsewhere, 
unless  for  necessity,  every  such  person  so  found,  com- 
plained of,  and  proved  transgressing,  shall  pay  ten  shil- 
lings for  every  such  transgression,  or  suffer  corporal  pun- 
ishment for  default  of  due  payment.  Nor  shall  any  sell 
or  draw  any  sort  of  strong  drink  at  any  time,  or  to  be 
used  in  any  such  manner,  upon  the  like  penalty  for  every 
default. 

It  is  also  further  ordered  that  no  servile  work  shall  be 
done  on  the  Sabbath,  viz.,  such  as  are  not  works  of  piety, 
charity,  or  necessity ;  and  no  profane  discourse  or  talk, 


I  go  Su7iday  Legislation. 

rude  or  un reverent  behavior  shall  be  used  on  that  holy 
day,  upon  the  penalty  of  ten  shillings  fine  for  every  trans- 
gression hereof,  and  in  case  the  offense  be  circumstanced 
with  high-handed  presumption  as  well  [as]  profaneness, 
the  penalty  to  be   augmented  at  the  discretion  of  the 

judges. 

"Colonial  Records  of  Connecticut  from  1665  to 

1677,"  p.  280. 

Under  date  of  May,  1684,  is  found  an  act  re- 
ferring to  the  foregoing  laws  and  their  enforce- 
ment in  the  following  words  : 

Whereas,  this  court,  in  the  calamitous  time  of  New 
England's  distress  by  the  war  with  the  Indians  in  the 
years  seventy-five  and  seventy-six,  were  moved  to  make 
some  laws  for  the  suppression  of  some  provoking  evils 
which  were  feared  to  be  growing  up  among  us,  as,  viz., 
profanation  of  the  Sabbath,  neglect  of  catechising  of 
children  and  servants,  and  family  prayer,  .  .  .  which 
laws  (for  want  of  due  prosecution  of  offenders  that  are 
guilty  of  the  breach  of  them)  have  little  tended  to  the 
suppressing  of  the  growth  of  said  evils  amongst  us,  and 
have  not  answered  that  expectation  of  reformation  which 
this  court  aimed  at ;  it  is  therefore  ordered  by  this  court, 
that  the  selectmen,  constables,  and  grand  jurymen  in  the 
several  plantations  shall  have  a  special  care  in  their,  re- 
spective places  to  promote  the  due  and  full  attendance 
of  those  forementioned  orders  of  this  court,  by  the  sev- 
eral inhabitants  of  their  respective  towns.  And  the  se- 
lectmen, constables,  and  grand  jurymen  shall,  at  least 
once  a  month,  make  presentment  of  all  breaches  of  such 
laws  as  are  come  to  their  knowledge,  to  the  next  assist- 
ant or  commissioner  under  their  lands. 


In  America — Colo7iial  Period.        191 

Any  failure  on  the  part  of  these  officers  to 
perform  the  above-mentioned  duties  was  made 
finable  to  the  amount  of  ten  shillings  for  every 
neglect,  Two  years  later  this  act  was  renewed 
in  nearly  the  same  words.  (''  Colonial  Records  of 
Connecticut  from  1678  to  1689,"  pp.  148,  203.) 
Thus  did  Sabbath  desecration,  so  called,  increase 
in  spite  of  these  stringent  laws,  guarded  by  severe 
and  often-executed  penalties. 

Soon  after  this  came  the  interruption  of  the 
government  by  Andros,  which  lasted  between  one 
and  two  years.  When  the  government  was  re- 
stored, the  general  court  declared  all  laws  to  be 
binding  which  were  in  force  before  the  interrup- 
tion. After  this  restoration  of  the  colonial  gov- 
ernment in  1689,  little  appears  concerning  the 
Sunday  laws  for  several  years.  In  171 5  an  es- 
pecial act  was  passed  concerning  the  movements 
of  vessels  in  the  harbors,  and  a  general  one  re- 
quiring the  officers  to  execute  the  existing  law 
against  vice  and  immorality,  among  which  the 
Sunday  laws  are  mentioned.  The  power  of  these 
officers  to  search  after  delinquents  was  also  in- 
creased. (''  Acts  and  Laws  of  Connecticut,"  folio 
edition,  pp.  206-208.  New  London,  171 5  and 
1737.)  In  1721  additional  laws  were  passed  under 
the  following  preamble : 

Whereas,  notwidistanding  the  liberty  by  law  granted 
to  all  persons  to  worship  God  in  such  places  as  they 
shall  for  that  end  provide,  and  in  such  manner  as  they 
shall  judge  to  be  most  agreeable  to  the  Word  of  God ; 


192  Su7iday  Legislation. 

and  notwithstanding  the  laws  already  provided  for  the 
sanctification  of  the  Lord's  day,  or  the  Christian  Sabbath, 
many  disorderly  persons  in  abuse  of  that  liberty,  and 
regardless  of  those  laws,  neglect  the  public  worship  of 
God  on  the  said  day,  and  profane  the  same  by  their  rude 
and  unlawful  behavior  ;  therefore,  etc. 

By  this  law : 

1.  Non-attendance  on  lawful  public  worship 
was  subjected  to  a  fine  of  five  shillings. 

2.  The  same  penalty  was  incurred  by  going 
forth  from  one's  place  of  abode  for  any  reason 
except  to  attend  worship  or  perform  works  of 
necessity. 

3.  A  fine  of  twenty  shillings  was  imposed  for 
assembling  in  any  meeting-house  on  Sunday  with- 
out the  consent  of  the  congregation  to  whom  it 
belonged  and  the  minister  who  usually  officiated 
in  it. 

4.  Disturbing  any  meeting  for  public  worship 
on  Sunday  was  made  punishable  by  a  fine  of 
forty  shillings. 

5.  Failure  to  pay  or  secure  a  fine  imposed  for 
any  of  these  offenses,  w^ithin  one  week,  was  pun- 
ished by  labor  in  the  house  of  correction  for  one 
month  or  less. 

6.  No  appeal  from  a  justice's  court  Avas  al- 
lowed. 

7.  All  charges  were  to  be  preferred  within  one 
month  from  the  time  of  the  offense.  ("  Acts  and 
Laws  of  Connecticut,"  folio,  pp.  261,  262.  New 
London,  I7i5-i737-) 


In  America — Colo7iial  Period.        193 

Other  supplementary  acts  were  also  passed, 
relating  mainly  to  the  duties  of  the  civil  authori- 
ties in  executing  these  laws.  In  1726  all  assistant 
justices  of  the  peace  were  empowered,  on  their 
own  "  plain  view  or  personal  knowledge  "  of  pro- 
fanity, drunkenness,  or  Sabbath-breaking,  to  make 
out  a  judgment  accordingly  against  the  offender, 
**any  law  or  custom  to  the  contrary  notwith- 
standing."    {Ibid.,  p.  319.) 

In  1733  a  more  extensive  code  was  established, 
of  which  the  following  is  an  outline : 

1.  Non-attendance  on  public  worship  for  a 
specified  time,  was  punished  by  a  fine  of  three 
shillings. 

2.  Ten  shillings  was  made  the  penalty  for  as- 
sembling in  a  meeting-house  without  the  consent 
of  the  congregation  and  minister  for  whom  it  was 
provided.  No  persons  were  allowed  to  neglect 
public  v/orship,  and  meet  in  private  houses,  on 
penalty  of  ten  shillings. 

3.  All  work  or  play,  on  land  or  water,  on  Sun- 
days, fast,  or  thanksgiving  days,  was  prohibited 
under  a  fine  of  ten  shillings. 

4.  Disturbing  public  worship  by  rude  or  clam- 
orous behavior,  in  or  within  hearing  of  the  as- 
sembly, was  fined  forty  shillings. 

5.  All  traveling,  except  in  great  extremity,  was 
forbidden  on  pain  of  twenty  shillings  fine,  and  all 
absence  from  one's  house,  except  for  church  at- 
tendance, or  '■'■  necessity,"  incurred  a  fine  of  five 
shillings. 


194  Sunday  Legislation. 

6.  Staying  outside  at  the  meeting-house  (there 
being  room  inside),  or  going  out  unnecessarily 
during  service,  or  playing  or  talking  around 
places  of  worship,  was  finable  in  the  sum  of  three 
shillings.  Gathering  in  companies  in  streets,  or 
elsewhere,  on  the  evening  before  or  the  evening 
after  the  Sunday,  or  on  the  evening  after  any  fast 
day,  religious  gatherings  excepted,  was  liable  to 
a  penalty  of  three  shillings,  or  two  hours  in  the 
stocks. 

7.  Loitering  or  drinking,  in  or  about  any  pub- 
lic place  after  sunset  on  Saturday  night,  subjected 
both  the  offender  and  the  keeper  of  the  place  to  a 
fine  of  five  shillings. 

8.  No  vessel  was  allowed  to  put  to  sea  from 
any  harbor,  river,  or  creek  within  the  colonial 
limits  without  license,  granted  only  in  extreme 
emergency,  nor  to  weigh  anchor  within  two  miles 
of  any  place  of  meeting,  unless  to  get  nearer 
to  that  place,  under  forfeiture  of  thirty  shil- 
lings. 

9.  Posting  notices  on  Sunday,  or  publishing 
them  in  any  way,  was  declared  illegal,  and  the 
proper  officers  were  instructed  to  destroy  all  such 
as  should  be  put  up,  and  the  one  putting  up  the 
same  was  subjected  to  a  fine  of  five  shillings. 

10.  Two  *' tythingmen "  were  ordered  to  be 
appointed  for  every  parish ;  these  were  empowered 
and  instructed,  after  the  usual  manner,  to  execute 
these  provisions.  Whipping,  twenty  stripes  or 
less,  was  the  penalty  for  non-payment  of  a  fine. 


Li  America — Colonial  Period.        195 

("Acts  and  Laws  of  Connecticut,  1750  to  1772," 

pp.  139-142.) 

In  1 76 1,  in  spite  of  all  that  had  been  done, 
traveling  is  declared  to  be  a  ''  growing  evil,"  and 
all  assistant  justices  of  the  peace  are  empowered 
to  arrest,  without  a  written  warrant,  any  person 
traveling  unnecessarily,  and  every  sheriff,  consta- 
ble, grand  juryman  and  tything-man  was  em- 
powered to  take  such  person  into  custody,  ''  upon 
sight,  or  present  information  of  others."  Refusal 
to  aid  in  any  such  arrest,  when  called  upon,  in- 
curred the  usual  penalties.     (Ibid.,  p.  259.) 

In  1770  an  act  was  passed  allowing  all  sober 
persons  who  conscientiously  differed  from  the  es- 
tablished worship  and  ministr}^  of  the  colony,  to 
meet  together  for  worship  without  incurring  the 
penalties  provided  for  in  the  preceding  laws 
against  such  meetings,  and  against  absence  from 
the  recognized  services.     {Ibid.,  p.  351.) 

Rhode  Island  Colony  Laws. 

The  land  of  Roger  Williams  must  of  necessity 
have  produced  Sunday  laws  different  from  those 
of  the  other  New  England  colonies.  What  these 
laws  were  will  be  clearly  seen  by  the  following 
extracts.  The  General  Assembly,  sitting  at  New- 
port, on  the  2d  day  of  September,  1673,  enacted 
as  follows : 

Voted,  this  Assembly  considering  that  the  King  hath 
granted  us  that  not  any  in  this  colony  are  to  be  molested 


196  Sunday  Legislatio7t, 

in  the  liberty  of  their  consciences,  who  are  not  disturb- 
ers of  the  civil  peace,  and  we  are  persuaded  that  a  most 
flourishing  civil  government,  with  loyalty,  may  be  best 
propagated  where  liberty  of  conscience  by  any  corporal 
power  is  not  obstructed,  that  is  not  to  any  unchasteness 
of  body,  and  not  by  a  body  doing  any  hurt  to  a  body, 
neither  endeavoring  so  to  do,  and  although  we  know  by 
man  not  any  can  be  forced  to  worship  God,  or  for  to 
keep  holy  or  not  to  keep  holy  any  day  ;  but  forasmuch 
as  the  first  days  of  the  weeks  it  is  usual  for  parents  and 
masters  not  to  employ  their  children  or  servants,  as  upon 
other  days,  and  some  others  also  that  are  not  under 
such  government,  accounting  it  as  spare  time,  and  so 
spend  it  in  debaistness  or  tippling,  and  unlawful  games, 
and  wantonness,  and  most  abominably  there  practiced 
by  those  that  live  with  the  English,  at  such  times  to  re- 
sort to  towns.  Therefore,  this  Assembly,  not  to  oppose 
or  propagate  any  worship,  but  as  by  preventing  debaist- 
ness, although  we  know  masters  or  parents  can  not,  and 
are  not,  by  violence  to  endeavor  to  force  any  under  their 
government,  to  any  worship,  or  from  any  worship,  that  is 
not  debaistness  or  disturbant  to  the  civil  peace,  but  they 
are  to  require  them,  and  if  that  will  not  prevail,  if  they 
can,  they  should  compel  them  not  to  do  what  is  debaist- 
ness, or  uncivil,  or  inhuman,  not  to  frequent  any  immod- 
est company  or  practices. 

Therefore,  by  his  Majesty's  authority  it  is  enacted, 
that  on  the  first  days  of  the  weeks,  whoever  he  be  that 
doth  let  any  have  any  drink,  that  he  or  any  other  is  drunk 
thereby,  besides  all  other  forfeitures  therefor  for  every 
one  so  drunk,  they  shall  forfeit  six  shillings,  and  for  every 
one  that  entertains  in  gaming  or  tippling  upon  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  he  shall  forfeit  six  shillings.     And  by 


Iji  America — Colo7iial  Period,        197 

his  Majesty's  authority,  thereby  it  is  enacted,  that  for  to 
prevent  any  such  misdemeanors,  if  any  are  so  guilty,  to 
discover  them,  that  every  first  day  of  the  week,  in  every 
town  in  this  colony  there  shall  be  a  constable's  watch, 
for  every  inhabitant  fit  to  watch,  to  take  his  turn,  that 
belongeth  to  the  town,  or  pay  for  hiring  one,  so  for  one 
or  more  to  v/atch  in  a  day  as  the  Town  Council  judge 
necessary  to  restrain  any  debaistness,  or  immodesty,  or 
concourse  of  people,  tippling  or  gaming,  or  wantonness, 
that  all  modest  assemblies  may  not  be  interrupted  ;  es- 
pecially all  such  that  profess  they  meet  in  the  worship 
of  God  ;  if  some  of  them  will  be  most  false  worshipers, 
they  should  only  be  strove  against,  therefore,  with 
spiritual  weapons,  if  they  do  not  disown  that  they 
should  not  be  condemned,  whoever  they  be,  that  be  un- 
chaste with  their  bodies,  or  with  their  bodies  oppress  or 
do  violence  to  what  is  mortal  of  any  man,  but,  as  they 
should'  be  subject  to  such,  to  suffer  for  such  transgres- 
sions, parents  may  thereof  correct  their  children  and 
masters  their  servants  ;  and  magistrates  should  be  a  ter- 
ror to  such  evil  doers. 

"Rhode  Island  Colonial  Records,  1664-77,"  vol. 
ii,  PP-  503.  504- 

At  a  general  assembly  held  at  Newport,  May 
7th,  1679,  the  following  action  was  taken: 

Voted,  whereas  there  hath  complaint  been  made  that 
sundry  persons  being  evil-minded,  have  presumed  to 
employ  in  servile  labor,  more  than  necessity  requireth, 
their  servants  and  also  hire  other  men's  servants  and 
sell  them  to  labor  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  ;  for  the 
prevention  whereof,  be  it  enacted,  by  this  Assembly  and 
the  authority  thereof,  that  if  any  person  or  persons 
14 


198  Sunday  Legislation, 

shall  employ  his  servants,  or  hire  and  employ  any 
other  man's  servant  or  servants  and  set  them  to  la- 
bor, as  aforesaid,  the  person  or  persons  so  offending 
shall,  upon  proof  thereof  made,  pay  for  every  offense 
by  him  or  them  committed,  five  shillings  in  money,  to 
the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  town  or  place  in  which  the 
oif  enses  are  committed  ;  which  said  five  shillings,  if  the 
person  offending  refuse,  upon  conviction  before  one 
magistrate,  to  pay,  a  warrant  under  the  hand  of  one 
magistrate,  directed  to  the  sergeant  of  the  town  where 
the  offense  was  committed,  shall  be  his  sufficient  war- 
rant to  take  by  distraint  so  much  of  the  estate  of  the 
offending  party,  together  with  two  shillings  for  his 
service  therein. 

And  be  it  further  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid, 
that  if  any  person  or  persons  shall  presume  to  sport, 
game,  or  play  at  any  manner  of  game  or  games,  or 
shooting,  on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  as  aforesaid,  or 
shall  sit  tippling  and  drinking  in  any  tavern,  ale-house, 
ordinary,  or  victualing  house  on  the  first  day  of  the  week, 
more  than  necessity  requireth,  and  upon  examination  of 
the  fact  it  shall  be  judged  by  one  justice  of  the  peace, 
the  person  offending,  as  aforesaid,  upon  conviction  be- 
fore one  justice  of  the  peace,  shall,  by  the  said  justice 
of  the  peace,  be  sentenced  for  every  of  the  aforesaid 
offenses  to  sit  in  the  stocks  three  hours,  or  pay  five 
shillings  in  money  for  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  town  or 
place  where  the  offense  was  committed. 

"Rhode    Island   Colonial   Records,    1678-1706," 
vol.  iii,  p.  30. 

Various  modifications  or  simple  re-enactments 
of  the  Rhode  Island  Sunday  laws  Avere  made  in 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        199 

1750  and  1784.  In  1798  the  laws  of  the  State 
were  revised.  The  main  features  of  the  Sunday 
Taws  were  not  changed.  All  work  or  play  was 
prohibited  on  penalty  of  one  dollar  for  the  first 
offense,  and  two  dollars  for  the  second.  In  de- 
fault of  payment,  the  offender  was  to  suffer  ten 
days'  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail.  The  same 
penalty  was  imposed  for  employing  others.  All 
complaints  to  be  made  within  ten  days  after  the 
offense.  An  appeal  was  allowed.  Otherwise  the 
law  of  1798  was  identical  with  the  present  law. 
("  Public  Laws  of  Rhode  Island  and  Providence 
Plantations,"  pp.  577  to  579,  Providence,  1798.) 

New  York. 

There  was  no  representative  government  in 
what  is  now  the  State  of  New  York  until  nearly 
a  century  after  the  first  settlements  were  made 
within  its  limits.  The  records  of  the  first  half- 
century  of  the  existence  of  the  colony  of  New 
Netherlands,  as  it  was  called,  are  very  meager. 
The  government  was  administered  by  officers  ap- 
pointed in  Holland.  The  religious  views  of  the 
Hollanders  made  it  impossible  that  such  an  observ- 
ance of  Sunday  should  obtain  in  New  Netherlands 
as  was  common  in  new  England. 

In  1647  Peter  Stuyvesant  was  made  ''Dicta- 
tor "  of  the  colony.  According  to  the  statements 
of  Mr.  Brodhead  ("  History  of  New  Netherlands," 
first  period,  p.  466),  the  social,  civil,  and  religious 


200  Stinday  Legislation, 

affairs  of  the  colony  were  in  a  sad  state  of  decline. 
The  preceding  administration  of  Kieft  had  been 
ruinous  in  many  respects.  On  the  arrival  of  Stuy- 
vesant,  says  Mr.  Brodhead — 

Proclamations  were  immediately  issued  with  a  zeal 
and  rapidity  which  promised  to  work  a  "  thorough  refor- 
mation." Sabbath-breaking,  brawling  and  drunkenness 
were  forbidden.  Publicans  were  restrained  from  selling 
liquors,  except  to  travelers,  before  two  o'clock  on  Sun- 
days, "when  there  is  no  preaching,"  and  after  nine 
o'clock  in  the  evening. 

Stuyvesant  was  a  member  of  the  Reformed 
Church  at  home,  and  was  probably  more  strict 
than  the  most  of  his  countrymen.  In  1673  each 
town  was  empowered  to  make  laws  against  Sab- 
bath-breaking and  other  immoralities  (Documents 
relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  New  York, 
vol.  ii,  p.  621).  The  administration  of  Stuyvesant 
was  the  beginning  of  efforts  at  Sunday  legislation. 

In  1 69 1  a  representative  government  was  es- 
tablished under  the  English  crown.  In  1695,  Oc- 
tober 22d,  the  first  Sunday  law  was  passed  by  that 
government.  It  was  prefaced  by  the  following 
preamble,  which  gives  an  idea  of  the  state  of  the 
country  at  that  time  : 

Whereas,  the  true  and  sincere  worship  of  God  ac- 
cording to  his  holy  will  and  commandments,  is  often 
profaned  and  neglected  by  many  of  the  inhabitants  and 
sojourners  in  this  province,  who  do  not  keep  holy  the 
Lord's  day,  but  in  a  disorderly  manner  accustom  them- 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        201 

selves  to  travel,  laboring,  working,  shooting,  fishing, 
sporting,  playing,  horse-racing,  frequenting  of  tippling 
houses  and  the  using  many  other  unlawful  exercises  and 
pastimes,  upon  the  Lord's  day,  to  the  great  scandal  of 
the  holy  Christian  faith,  be  it  enacted,  etc. 

These  are  the  provisions  of  the  law : 

1.  Six  shillings  fine  for  any  of  the  above-named 
crimes,  or  any  manner  of  work  or  play. 

2.  Any  justice  of  the  peace  might  convict 
offenders,  on  ''  his  own  sight,"  "  on  their  confes- 
sion," or  on  the  testimony  of  "one  or  more  wit- 
nesses " ;  fines  were  to  be  collected  by  distraint, 
if  necessary.  In  default  of  payment,  the  offender 
was  to  sit  for  three  hours  in  the  "  stocks."  If  any 
master  refused  to  pay  the  fine  imposed  upon  a 
negro  or  Indian  slave  or  servant,  said  slave  or 
servant  was  to  be  whipped  "  thirteen  lashes." 
All  complaint  against  offenders  w^ere  to  be  made 
within  one  month. 

3.  It  was  lawful  to  travel  any  distance  under 
twenty  miles,  for  the  purpose  of  attending  public 
worship.  It  was  also  lawful  to  "go  for  a  physi- 
cian or  nurse."  These  exemptions  were  not  good 
in  favor  of  unchristianized  Indians.  ("  Laws  of 
New  York  from  1691  to  1773,"  large  folio  edition, 
vol.  i,  p.  23,  24.     New  York,  1874.) 

No  other  law  concerning  Sunday  observance 
appears  until  after  the  establishment  of  the  State 
government. 


202  Sunday  Legislation, 

Pennsylvania. 

The  early  Sunday  laws  of  Pennsylvania  were 
far  less  strict  than  those  of  the  New  England 
States.  In  i/oo-'oi  a  general  law  was  passed, 
John  Evans  being  lieutenant-governor,  under 
William  Penn,  of  w^hich  the  following  is  the  sub- 
stance : 

1.  All  general  servile  work  on  Sunday  was 
prohibited  on  pain  of  twenty  shillings  fine.  The 
exceptions  under  this  provision  were  quite  numer- 
ous. They  allowed  the  preparing  of  food  in  pub- 
lic houses,  the  dressing  and  selling  of  meat  by 
butchers  and  fishermen  during  the  months  of 
June,  July,  and  August,  the  selling  of  milk  before 
nine  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  the  landing  of 
passengers  by  watermen  during  the  entire  day. 

2.  No  civil  process  was  servable  on  Sunday. 

3.  Any  person  found  "  tippling "  in  public 
drinking-houses  was  fined  one  shilling  and  six- 
pence. Any  dealer  who  allowed  persons  to  drink 
and  lounge  about  his  premises,  was  liable  to  pay 
ten  shillings  fine.  "  Taverns  "  were,  however,  al- 
lowed to  sell  to  regular  inmates  and  travelers  "  in 
moderation."  ("  Acts  of  the  Assembly  of  the 
Province  of  Pennsylvania,"  vol.  i,  pp.  19-21,  folio 
edition,  Philadelphia,  1762.) 

There  were  various  changes  and  modifications 
of  this  law,  from  time  to  time,  up  to  1786,  when 
all  former  laws  were  repealed  and  a  new  one 
enacted.     The   new  law  imposed  thirty  shillings 


In  America — Colonial  Period,        203 

fine  for  working  or  sporting.  It  excepted  '*  boat- 
men," "  watermen,"  "  stage  coaches  (having  the 
consent  of  a  justice  on  extraordinary  occasions)," 
the  general  work  of  preparing  food,  and  the 
"  delivery  of  milk  and  other  necessaries  of  life," 
before  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  after  five 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  Any  offender,  in  default 
of  payment  of  his  line  was  liable  to  imprisonment. 
("  Laws  of  Pennsylvania,"  vol.  iii,  chap.  297,  folio 
edition.) 

In  1794,  the  above  law  was  repealed,  and  its 
place  supplied  by  one  differing  only  in  a  few  par- 
ticulars. By  it  the  general  fine  was  placed  at  four 
dollars,  and  "persons  removing  their  families" 
were  placed  upon  the  list  of  exceptions  under  the 
head  of  traveling.  ("  Laws  of  Pennsylvania,"  chap. 
1746,  sec.  I,  8mo  edition,  Philadelphia,  1803.) 

There  has  been  but  little,  if  any,  change  in  the 
statute  Sunday  law  of  Pennsylvania  since  1794. 

Virginia. 

The  early  laws  of  Virginia  have  some  resem- 
blance to  those  of  New  England. 

Hon.  R.  W.  Thompson,  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
in  an  address  delivered  in  Washington,  May  16, 
1880,  makes  the  following  statement  concerning  a 
law  made  before  the  organization  of  the  regular 
assembly  in  161 9: 

The  very  first  statute  passed  by  the  Cavaliers  of  Vir- 
ginia provided  that   he  who  did  not  attend  church  on 


204  Sunday  Legislation. 

Sunday,  should  pay  a  fine  of  two  pounds  of  tobacco. 
This  was  the  first  law  ever  enacted  in  the  United  States, 
and  was  passed  in  1617,  three  years  before  the  Puritans 
landed  at  Plymouth. 

"Sabbath  Doc.  No.  45,"  p.  15,  New  York. 

In  1623,  a  law  was  passed  in  these  words: 
Whosoever  shall  absent  himself  from  divine  service 
any  Sunday  without  an  allowed  excuse,  shall  forfeit  a 
pound  of  tobacco ;    and  he  that  absents  himself  for  a 
month  shall  forfeit  fifty  pounds  of  tobacco. 

"Statutes   at  Large  of  Virginia,  Hening,   1619- 
1660,"  vol.  i,  p.  123. 

In  1629,  the  authorities  were  ordered  to  take 
care  that  the  above  law  was  carefully  executed, 
and  to  ''see  that  the  Sabbath-day  be  not  ordinarily 
profaned  by  working  in  any  employments,  or  by 
journeying  from  place  to  place."     (Ibid.,  p.  144.) 

In  1642,  *' church  wardens  "  are  bound  by  their 
oath  of  office,  to  present  to  the  civil  authorities  all 
cases  of  "  profaning  God's  name,  and  his  holy  Sab- 
baths." In  the  same  year  it  was  "  enacted  for  the 
better  observation  of  the  Sabbath,  that  no  person 
or  persons  shall  take  a  voyage  upon  the  same,  ex- 
cept it  be  to  church,  or  for  other  causes  of  extreme 
necessity,  upon  the  penalty  of  the  forfeiture  for 
such  offense,  of  twenty  pounds  of  tobacco."  {Ibid., 
pp.  240  and  261.)  In  i657-*58,  this  law  was  extend- 
ed so  as  to  prohibit  ''  traveling,  loading  of  boats, 
shooting  of  game,  and  the  like,"  and  the  penalty 
was  increased  to  ''one  hundred  pounds  of  tobac- 


hi  America — Colo7zial  Period.        205 

CO,"  or  a  place  in  the  ''stocks."  The  execution  of 
any  ordinary  civil  process  is  also  forbidden  during 
this  year.  {Ibid.,  pp.  434  and  457.)  In  1691,  the 
penalty  was  changed  to  "  twenty  shillings,"  and  in 
1696,  to  "  twenty  shillings  or  two  hundred  pounds 
of  tobacco."  In  1705,  the  specifications  of  the  law 
were  increased,  and  all  general  acts  of  profanation 
by  working,  playing,  drinking,  etc.,  and  also  ab- 
sence from  church  for  one  month,  were  included 
in  one  class,  the  penalty  being  "  five  shillings  or 
fifty  pounds  of  tobacco."  In  default  of  payment, 
the  offender  was  subjected  to  "  ten  lashes."  {Ibid., 
vol.  iii,  pp.  73,  138,  and  361.) 

In  1786,  a  more  elaborate  code  v/as  passed,  the 
substance  of  which  was  as  follows : 

1.  All  ministers  properly  licensed,  and  faithful 
to  the  commonwealth,  were  exempted  from  arrest 
on  any  civil  process  while  performing  public  re- 
ligious duties. 

2.  Maliciously  disturbing  any  public  religious 
meeting,  was  made  punishable  by  fine  and  impris- 
onment. 

3.  All  labor,  whether  performed  by  one's  self, 
or  by  one's  employes,  was  made  liable  to  a  fine  of 
ten  shillings.     {Ibid.,  vol.  xii,  pp.  336,  337.) 

In  1792,  the  foregoing  law  was  re-enacted  with 
little  or  no  change.  In  1801,  a  law  was  passed 
forbidding  any  one  to  trade  with  slaves  on  Sun- 
day, without  the  consent  of  their  masters,  under 
penalty  of  ten  dollars  fine  above  the  usual  punish- 
ment for  "■  Sabbath-breaking."     ("  Acts  of  the  As- 


2o6  Sujiday  Legislation, 

sembly  of  Virginia,"   vol.  i,  pp.  276,  432.    Rich- 
mond, 1803.) 

In  1 8 19,  certain  restrictions  were  placed  upon 
the  "■  excessive  drinking- "  on  Sunday,  or  other 
days  of  religious  worship  appointed  by  public 
authority,  the  penalty  of  the  liquor-seller  being 
the  "loss  of  his  license."  ("Revised  Code  of 
1819,"  p.  283.) 


Enforcement   of   Sunday  Laws  in  the  New 
England  Colonies. 

Such  was  the  Sunday  Legislation  during  the 
Colonial  period  and  in  the  leading  colonies  of  the 
United  States.  The  history  of  that  period  gives 
ample  proof  that  these  Sunday  laws  were  not  a 
"  dead  letter."  A  few  examples  relative  to  their 
enforcement  are  here  given.  It  would  be  tedious 
and  useless  to  note  every  instance  in  which  these 
laws  were  executed.  The  majority  of  the  cases 
were,  doubtless,  disposed  of  by  the  common  mag- 
istrates, and  hence  do  not  appear  upon  the  records 
of  the  higher  courts.  A  few  representative  in- 
stances are  given. 

October  6,  1636,  John  Barnes  was  found  guilty 
of  "Sabbath-breaking"  by  a  jury,  and  fined 
"  thirty  shillings,"  and  "  made  to  sit  in  the  stocks 
one  hour."  In  1637,  Stephen  Hopkins  was  pre- 
sented for  "  suffering  men  to  drink  at  his  house 
upon  the  Lord's  day."  Two  years  later,  Web 
Adey  was  arraigned  for  working  in  his  garden  on 


hi  America — Colonial  Period.        207 

Sunday.  Before  the  year  closes  he  repeats  the 
offense  and  is  *'  set  in  the  stocks"  and  **  whipped 
at  the  post."  (''  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol. 
i,  pp.  44,  6Z,  86,  92.) 

In  1649,  John  Shaw  was  set  in  the  stocks  for 
"attending  tar  pits"  on  Sunday,  and  Stephen 
Bryant  was  arrested,  and  "  admonished,"  for  carry- 
ing- a  barrel  to  the  same  pits  on  the  same  day. 
The  next  year,  1650,  Edward  Hunt  was  arrested 
for  shooting  at  deer  on  Sunday,  Gowan  White 
and  Z.  Hick  called  to  account  for ''  traveling  from 
Weymouth  to  Scituate  on  the  Lord's  day."  In 
1 65 1,  Elizabeth  Eddy  was  arrested  for  ''  wringing 
and  hanging  out  clothes  on  the  Lord's  day  in  time 
of  service."  Aurther  Howland,  for  not  attending 
church,  and  Nathaniel  Basset  and  Joseph  Pryor, 
for  ''  disturbing  the  church  of  Duxburrow,"  were 
also  called  to  answer  the  demands  of  the  law. 
("  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  ii,  pp.  140, 
156,  165,  173,  174.) 

In  1651-52,  Abraham  Pierce,  Henry  Clarke, 
and  Thurston  Clarke,  Jr.,  were  arrested  for  lazily 
spending  Sunday,  and  staying  away  from  public 
service.  Two  or  three  years  later,  Peter  Gaunt, 
Ralph  Allen,  Sen.,  and  George  Allen  appeared  to 
answer  to  a  similar  charge,  and  William  Chase 
was  called  to  answer  for  having  driven  a  pair  of 
oxen  in  the  yoke  "about  five  miles  on  the  Lord's 
day,  in  time  of  exercise."  In  1658,  Lieutenant 
James  Wyatt  was  "  sharply  reproved  "  for  writing 
a  business  note  on  Sunday,  "  at  least  in  the  even- 


2o8  Su7iday  Legislatio7i. 

ing  somewhat  too  soon."  At  the  same  time, 
Sarah  Kirby  Avas  ''  publicly  Avhipped  "  for  disturb- 
ing- public  worship,  and  Ralph  Jones  paid  '^  ten 
shillings  fine  "  for  staying  at  home  when  the  au- 
thorities thought  he  had  ought  to  have  been  at 
church.  ('*  Plymouth  Colony  Records,"  vol.  iii, 
pp.  5,  ID,  52,  74,  III,  112.)  Similar  cases  might  be 
quoted  until  many  pages  were  filled,  in  which  the 
reader  would  see  that  not  only  ordinary  manual 
labor  on  Sunday  was  punished,  but  ''  whipping  of 
servants,"  "  playing  at  cards,"  ^'  smoking  tobac- 
co," etc.,  were  sharply  dealt  with.  Those  were 
times  when  laws  were  made'  to  be  executed. 
Duty  was  the  central  idea  in  the  Puritan  system, 
and  zeal  was  ever  on  the  alert  to  perform  what 
conscience  or  law  demanded.  The  ''  Blue  Laws  " 
which  exist  in  tradition,  though  sometimes  exag- 
gerated, and  facetiously  misrepresented,  are  a  fair 
index  to  the  rigid  spirit  of  those  days.  The  com- 
pilations of  the  ''  Blue  Laws "  by  Barber  and 
Smucker  are  mainly,  if  not  entirely,  correct.  At 
the  time  of  the  adoption  of  the  State  Constitu- 
tions, corporal  punishment  in  the  "■  stocks  "  and 
the  ''cage,"  and  at  the  ''whipping  post"  was  be- 
coming obsolete. 


CHAPTER  X. 

SUNDAY   LAWS   OF  THE    STATES  AND   TERRITORIES 
OF   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

This  chapter  presents  the  Sunday  laws  of  the 
United  States  in  force  at  the  close  of  1887.  They 
are  condensed,  to  avoid  verbiage,  but  the  provis- 
ions of  each  are  carefully  given.  The  laws  indicate 
the  legal  status  of  the  Sunday,  which,  however, 
differs  widely  from  its  actual  status.  In  general, 
these  laAvs  are  "  dead  letter."  Whoever  wishes  to 
disobey  them,  does  so.  Tvlany  of  them  which 
seem  to  be  stringent,  are  open  enough  to  "  drive 
a  coach  and  four  through  without  touching." 
The  word  "  necessity  "  admits  of  a  broad  interpre- 
tation. In  some  test  cases  courts  have  decided 
that  cigars  are  "  necessary  "  to  those  v^ho  smoke, 
and  may  be  sold  under  that  plea.  The  result  of 
such  indifference  to  law  weakens  regard  for  all 
legal  authority.  Special  laws  concerning  the  sale 
of  alcoholic  drinks  on  Sunday,  except  such  pro- 
visions as  are  contained  in  the  general  laws,  are 
not  included  in  this  chapter.  These  are  generally 
local,  and  form  a  department  of  legislation  by 
themselves. 


2IO  Stinday  Legislation, 

Alabama. 

The  Sunday  law  of  Alabama  prohibits  doing, 
or  compelling  child,  servant,  or  apprentice  to  do, 
any  Avork  on  Sunday,  except  works  of  daily  neces- 
sity, comfort,  or  charity.  Hunting,  gaming,  card- 
playing,  and  racing  ;  keeping  open  store  or  shop, 
are  prohibited.  Penalty :  not  less  than  ten,  nor  more 
than  twenty  dollars  for  first  offense,  and  for  second 
and  all  subsequent  offenses,  not  less  than  twenty, 
nor  more  than  one  hundred.  Imprisonment  in 
county  jail,  or  sentence  to  hard  labor  for  the  coun- 
ty for  three  months,  or  less,  may  be  added,  after 
the  first  offense.  Opening  public  market  or  shop 
for  the  purpose  of  selling  or  trading  ;  bringing  to 
any  such  market  anything  for  trade  or  barter ; 
buying  or  selling  goods  or  wares,  including  cattle 
and  live-stock,  subjects  the  offender  to  the  above- 
named  penalties.  Such  offenders  may  be  pro- 
ceeded against  in  the  ordinary  way,  or  by  indict- 
ment in  city  or  circuit  courts.  A  "  market "  is 
any  place  where  people  assemble  for  the  sale  or 
purchase  of  things  prohibited. 

This  law  exempts  druggists,  railroads,  stages, 
steam  or  other  vessels  navigating  any  waters  with- 
in the  State,  and  such  manufacturing  establish- 
ments as  need  to  be  kept  in  constant  operation. 

All  contracts  made  on  Sunday  are  void,  except 
such  as  are  made  for  the  advancement  of  religion 
or  in  the  interest  of  works  of  necessity  or  mercy. 
Attachments    may    be   made   and   executed   if  a 


United  States.  211 

debtor  is  about  to  abscond,  or  remove  his  property 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  State. 

"Revised  Code  of  Alabama,  1876,"  pp.  563,  750, 
935- 

Arkansas. 

Arkansas  prohibits  all  labor  by  self,  or  com- 
pelling servant  or  apprentice  to  work,  except 
daily  domestic  duties  of  necessity,  or  works  of 
charity,  under  penalty  of  one  dollar  for  every  of- 
fense. Keeping  open  any  store,  or  retailing  any 
goods  or  wares,  keeping  open  any  dram-shop  or 
grocery,  or  selling  any  spirits  or  wine,  subjects 
the  offender  to  a  fine  of  not  less  than  ten  nor  more 
than  twenty  dollars,  charity  and  necessity  except- 
ed. Horse-racing  and  cock-fighting  for  any  bet  or 
wager,  or  for  amusement,  without  a  bet  or  wager, 
are  finable  between  twenty  and  one  hundred  dol- 
lars. Playing  at  cards  in  any  game  whatsoever, 
for  bet,  wager,  or  amusement,  is  finable  from 
twenty-five  to  fifty  dollars. 

Hunting  with  a  gun  for  game,  or  shooting  for 
amusement,  incurs  a  fine  of  from  five  to  twenty- 
five  dollars  for  each  offense.  Parents  and  guard- 
ians are  liable  for  offenses  of  minors,  if  the  acts  be 
performed  with  their  consent  or  approbation. 

All  vessels  and  all  manufacturing  establish- 
ments which  need  to  be  kept  in  constant  opera- 
tion are  exempted  from  the  provisions  against 
labor.  Persons  keeping  any  other  day  religiously 
are  also  exempt.     In  1885  the  provision  in  favor 


212  Sunday  Legislation. 

of  such  persons  was  repealed,  and  some  persecu- 
tion of  Seventh-day  Baptists  and  Seventh-day 
Adventists  followed.  Public  opinion  was  thus 
aroused,  and  the  exemption  was  promptly  re- 
stored early  in  1887. 

"  Mansfield  Digest  (official)  of  1884,"  pp.  486-4S8. 

Arizona. 
Arizona  has  no  Sunday  law. 

California. 

The  Sunday  law  of  California  was  wholly  re- 
pealed in  1883.  No  attempt  has  been  made  to  re- 
enact  a  Sunday  law  since  that  time. 

Colorado. 

Colorado  had  originally  a  general  Sunday 
law,  only  a  fragment  of  which  remains.  This 
prohibits  opening  of  saloons  or  tippling-houses  on 
that  day  ;  and  provides  a  fine  of  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, or  imprisonment  in  county  jail  not  exceeding 
six  months. 

Connecticut. 

The  Sunday  law  of  Connecticut  provides  that 
every  person  who  shall  do  any  secular  business  or 
labor,  except  works  of  necessity  or  mercy,  or  keep 
open  any  shop,  warehouse,  or  manufacturing  es- 
tablishment, or  expose  any  property  for  sale,  or 


United  States,  213 

engage  in  any  sport  or  recreation  on  Sunday  be- 
tween sunrise  and  sunset,  shall  be  fined  not  more 
than  four  dollars  nor  less  than  one  dollar;  but 
hay  wards  may  perform  their  official  duties  on  that 
day. 

Persons  present  at  any  concert,  dancing,  or 
other  public  diverson,  day  or  evening,  ''  shall  be 
fined  four  dollars." 

Prosecutions  for  the  foregoing  "  shall  be  exhib- 
ited within  one  month  after  the  offense  charged." 

Any  person  who  keeps  open  any  place  where 
it  is  reputed  that  intoxicating  liquors  are  exposed 
for  sale,  or  any  sports  or  games  of  chance  are  car- 
ried on  or  allowed,  between  twelve  o'clock  on 
Saturday  night  and  twelve  on  the  following  Sun- 
day night  shall  be  fined  forty  dollars,  or  impris- 
oned thirty  days,  or  both. 

Every  proprietor  or  driver  of  any  vehicle, 
not  employed  in  carrying  the  United  States  mail, 
who  shall  allow  any  person  to  travel  thereon  on 
Sunday  between  sunrise  and  sunset,  is  subject  to 
a  fine  of  twenty  dollars. 

Sabbatarians  who  conscientiously  observe 
Saturday,  and  disturb  no  other  person  while  at- 
tending public  worship  on  Sunday,  are  free  from 
the  penalties  of  this  law. 

A  civil  process  served  between  sunrise  and 
sunset  on  Sunday  is  void. 

Any  justice   of    the   peace   may   arraign    for 
trial    and    condemnation    on    his   own    personal 
knowledge. 
15 


214  Sunday  Legislation. 

Jn  1883,  the  act  against  the  letting  of  vehicles 
was  repealed. 

**  Revised  Statutes  of  Connecticut,  1875,"  pp.  398, 
521,  522,  523.  "Public  Acts  of  18S2,"  p. 
124.     "  Public  Acts  of  1883,"  p.  17. 

The  foregoing  statute  was  amended  in  1887  as 
follows : 

1.  No  corporation,  company,  or  association  operating 
any  railroad  in  this  State,  shall  run  any  train  on  any 
road  operated  by  it  within  this  State,  between  sunrise 
and  sunset  on  Sunday,  except  from  necessity  or  mercy ; 
always  provided^  that  before  ten  o'clock  and  thirty  min- 
utes in  the  forenoon  and  after  three  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon it  may  run  trains  carrying  the  United  States  mail, 
and  such  other  trains  or  classes  of  trains  as  may  be 
authorized  by  the  railroad  commissioners  of  this  State, 
on  application  made  to  them  on  the  ground  that  the  same 
are  required  by  the  public  necessity,  or  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  freight. 

2.  No  such  corporation,  company,  or  association 
shall  permit  the  handling,  the  loading,  or  the  unloading 
of  freight  on  any  road  operated  by  it,  or  at  any  of  its 
depots  or  stations  within  this  State,  between  sunrise  and 
sunset  on  Sunday,  except  from  necessity  or  mercy. 

3.  Every  such  corporation,  company,  or  association 
which  shall  violate  any  of  the  foregoing  provisions  of 
this  statute  shall  forfeit  and  pay  the  sum  of  two  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  for  any  such  violation,  to  be  recovered 
by  the  State  treasurer  in  an  action  of  debt  on  this 
statute. 

4.  No   such    corporation,   company,    or   association 


United  States,  215 

shall  transport  passengers  on  Sunday,  upon  any  train 
deemed  necessary  according  to  the  intent  of  section 
one  of  this  act,  for  less  than  the  highest  regular  fare  col- 
lected on  week  days,  and  no  commutation,  special  bar- 
gain, or  season  or  mileage  ticket  shall  include  or  provide 
for  any  travel  on  said  day,  under  a  penalty  of  fifty  dol- 
lars for  each  and  every  violation  of  this  provision,  to  be 
recovered  by  the  State  treasurer  in  an  action  of  debt  on 
this  statute. 

5.  This  act  shall  not  be  construed  as  repealing  or 
superseding  existing  statutes  which  prohibit  secular  work 
or  recreation  on  Sunday,  except  so  far  as  it  may  be 
found  in  its  operation  to  be  inconsistent  with  them. 

Approved,  March  11,  1887. 

"  Public  Acts  of  the  State  of  Connecticut,  January 
Session,  1887,"  pp.  665,  ddd. 

Dakota. 

Dakota  prohibits  servile  labor,  public  sports, 
trades,  manufacturing  and  mechanical  employ- 
ments, public  traffic,  and  legal  processes,  under  a 
general  penalty  of  one  dollar  for  each  offense. 

This  law  permits  works  of  necessity  and 
mercy.  It  also  allows  the  sale  of  milk,  meats,  and 
fish,  before  9  A.  M.,  or  food  to  be  eaten  on  the 
premises  at  any  time  ;  drugs,  medicines,  and  surgi- 
cal appliances.  Legal  processes  may  be  served  in 
case  of  a  breach  of  the  peace. 

Any  service  of  a  civil  process  upon  those  who 
keep  the  seventh  day,  is  held  to  be  a  misdemean- 
or.    Sunday  is  reckoned  from  midnight  to  mid- 


2i6  Sunday  Legislation, 

night.     Justices  of  the  peace  may   receive  com- 
plaints, issue  processes,  and  take  bail  on  Sunday. 
"Revised  Code  of  Dakota,'*  vol.  ii,  1883,  pp.  439, 
1 142,  1 143. 

Delaware. 

Delaware  prohibits  all  worldly  employment, 
labor,  or  business,  under  penalty  of  four  dollars 
fine  ;  failure  to  pay  which,  with  costs,  subjects  to 
imprisonment  for  twenty-four  hours,  or  less.  All 
kinds  of  traveling  and  the  exposure  of  any  kind  of 
goods  for  sale,  incurs  a  penalty  of  eight  dollars, 
with  imprisonment  for  twenty-four  hours  in  de- 
fault of  payment.  Any  justice  of  the  peace  may 
arrest  and  detain  any  one  found  traveling.  Fish- 
ing, fowling,  horse-racing,  cock-fighting,  hunting, 
engaging  in  any  game,  play,  or  dance,  incurs  a 
fme  of  four  dollars,  and  imprisonment,  as  above. 

All  forms  of  liquor-selling  are  prohibited. 

Justices  of  the  peace  have  full  jurisdiction  in 
all  cases. 

This  law  permits  works  of  necessity  and 
mercy. 

"Revised  Code  of  Delaware  of  1874,"  PP-  262, 
782,  783. 

Florida. 

Florida  prohibits  all  forms  of  business,  trade, 
or  manual  labor,  with  animals  or  mechanical  pow- 
er, except  works  of  necessity,  or  those  which  are 


United  States,  217 

justified  by  ^'accident  or  circumstance  of  the  oc- 
casion " ;  all  disposing  of  goods  of  any  kind,  by 
sale  or  barter,  except  in  emergencies  or  necessity, 
which  may  justify  selling  comforts  and  neces- 
saries of  life,  without  keeping  open  doors.  Gen- 
eral penalty:  twenty  to  fifty  dollars.  Employ- 
ment of  apprentices  or  servants  illegally  incurs  a 
penalty  of  ten  dollars.  The  use  of  fire-arms  for 
hunting  or  target-shooting  is  prohibited  under 
penalty  of  five,  to  twenty-five  dollars.  Fishing 
for  shad  within  the  State  between  sundown  on 
Saturday  and  sunrise  on  Monday  is  forbidden. 

McLellan's  "  Digest  "  (ofificial)  of  1881,  pp.  425, 
433- 

Georgia. 

Georgia  prohibits  keeping  open  tippling- 
houses,  day  or  night ;  running  of  freight-trains, 
except  those  carrying  live-stock,  which  may  run 
to  usual  points  for  water  and  feed  ;  it  permits 
trains  running  Saturday  night  to  run  to  destina- 
tion, if  schedule  time  is  not  later  than  8  A.  M.,  on 
Sunday ;  all  forms  of  business  and  labor,  except 
works  of  necessity  and  mercy ;  all  hunting  with 
dogs  or  guns,  or  both,  are  forbidden. 

All  misdemeanors  under  the  Sunday  law  are 
finable  in  any  sum  under  one  thousand  dollars,  or 
imprisonment  not  to  exceed  six  months,  or  hard 
labor  in  chain-gang,  not  to  exceed  twelve  months. 
One  or  more  of  these  penalties  may  be  ordered  at 
the  discretion  of  the  court. 


2i8  Sunday  Legislation, 

Bathing  on  Sunday,  in  sight  of  any  highway 
leading  to  or  from  any  house  of  worship,  incurs  a 
fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  or  impris- 
onment in  county  jail  not  to  exceed  six  months. 

^'Georgia  State  Code,"  L.  R.  &  H.,  of  1882,  pp. 
1184,  1196,  1197. 


Idaho  Territory. 

"  No  shop-keeper,  merchant,  saloon-keeper,  or 
other  person,  except  apothecaries  and  druggists, 
shall  keep  open  the  front  door  of  any  shop,  store, 
saloon,  or  other  place  of  business,  between  the 
hours  of  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  and  three 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,"  under  penalty  of  fine 
from  twenty  to  fifty  dollars. 

Nearly  all  civil  processes  are  permitted  in  case 
of  emergency. 

"  Revised   Statutes   of  Idaho   of  i874-'75,"   pp. 
844,  845. 

Illinois. 

Whoever  keeps  open  any  tippling-house  or 
place  where  liquor  is  sold  .or  given  away,  upon 
the  first  day  of  the  week,  commonly  called  Sun- 
day, shall  be  fined  not  exceeding  two  hundred 
dollars.  Sunday  shall  include  the  time  from  mid- 
night to  midnight. 

Whoever  disturbs  the  peace  and  good  order 
of  society  by  labor  (works  of  necessity  and  charity 
excepted),  or  by  any  amusement  or  diversion,  on 


United  States,  219 

Sunday,  shall  be  fined  not  exceeding  twenty-five 
dollars.  This  does  not  apply  to  watermen  or  rail- 
roads, as  to  ''landing  their  passengers,"  nor  to 
watermen  as  to  "  loading  and  unloading  their 
cargoes,"  or  to  ferrymen,  or  to  persons  removing 
their  families  ;  nor  does  it  prevent  the  "  due  exer- 
cise of  the  rights  of  conscience  by  whoever  thinks 
proper  to  keep  any  other  day  as  a  Sabbath." 
Disturbing  a  private  family  incurs  a  fine  of 
twenty-five  dollars. 

Contracts  made  on  Sunday  are  valid.  Writs 
may  be  served  on  emergency.  Injunctions  may 
be  served  in  case  of  urgent  necessity. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  1880,"  p.  396.     Also,  "An- 
notated Statutes,"  S.  &  B.,  pp.  316,  824,  1289. 

Indiana. 

Whoever,  being  over  fourteen  years  of  age,  is  found, 
on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  commonly  called  Sunday, 
rioting,  hunting,  fishing,  quarreling,  at  common  labor,  or 
engaged  in  his  usual  avocation  (works  of  charity  and 
necessity  only  excepted),  shall  be  fined  in  any  sum  not 
more  than  ten  nor  less  than  one  dollar  ;  but  nothing 
herein  contained  shall  be  construed  to  affect  such  as 
conscientiously  observe  the  seventh  day  of  the  week  as 
the  Sabbath,  travelers,  families  removing,  keepers  of  toll- 
bridges  and  toll-gates  and  ferrymen  acting  as  such. 

Attachments  may  be  served  where  the  debtor 
is  about  to  abscond.  Executions  may  be  issued 
when  plaintiff  fears  loss  of  judgment.     Civil  pro- 


220  Sunday  Legislation, 

cess  may  be  issued,  when  its  object  would  other- 
wise be  defeated. 

Recognizance  of  legal  papers  is  valid.  Selling, 
giving  away,  or  bartering  intoxicating  liquors  in- 
curs a  fine  from  ten  to  fifty  dollars  and  imprison- 
ment from  ten  to  sixty  days. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  1881,"  pp.   133,  176,  277, 
322,  375.  395- 

Iowa. 

If  any  person  be  found  on  the  first  day  of  the  week, 
commonly  called  Sabbath,  engaged  in  any  riot,  fighting, 
or  offering  to  fight,  hunting  or  shooting,  carrying  fire- 
arms, fishing,  horse-racing,  dancing,  or  in  any  manner 
disturbing  any  worshiping  assembly  or  private  family,  or 
in  buying  or  selling  property  of  any  kind,  or  in  any 
labor,  the  work  of  necessity  and  charity  only  excepted, 
every  person  so  offending  shall,  on  conviction,  be  fined 
in  a  sum  not  more  than  five  dollars,  nor  less  than  one 
dollar,  to  be  recovered  before  any  justice  of  the  peace  in 
the  county  where  such  offense  is  committed,  and  shall  be 
committed  to  the  jail  of  said  county  until  the  said  fine, 
together  with  the  costs  of  prosecution,  shall  be  paid  ;  but 
nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  construed  to  extend 
to  those  who  conscientiously  observe  the  seventh  day 
of  the  week  as  the  Sabbath,  or  to  prevent  persons  travel- 
ing, or  families  emigrating  from  pursuing  their  journey, 
or  keepers  of  toll-bridges,  toll-gates,  and  ferrymen  from 
attending  the  same. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  Iowa  of  1886,"  pp.  971,  972. 


United  States.  221 

Kansas. 

All  labor,  in  person  or  by  proxy,  except  works 
of  daily  and  general  necessity  and  of  charity,  is 
forbidden,  and  finable  twenty  dollars  or  less. 
Observers  of  Saturday  and  ferrymen  are  ex- 
empted. Horse-racing,  cock-fighting,  and  games 
of  all  kinds  incur  penalty,  not  exceeding  fifty  dol- 
lars. Sale,  or  exposure  for  sale,  of  goods,  mer- 
chandise, fermented  or  distilled  liquors  (drugs, 
medicines,  provisions,  or  other  articles  for  imme- 
diate use  excepted)  incurs  a  fine  of  fifty  dollars 
or  less.  Civil  service,  in  a  matter  of  habeas  corpus^ 
is  permitted  on  emergency.  Those  who  observe 
Saturday  are  free  from  civil  service  on  that  day, 
and  any  effort  to  serve  process  on  such  is  punish- 
able. Hunting  and  shooting  are  finable  from  five 
to  twenty  dollars. 

"Compiled  Laws  of  Kansas  (Dassler),  1885,"  pp. 
358,  813,  and  "Session  Laws  of  1886," p.  138. 

Kentucky. 

Prosecutions  for  .  .  .  Sabbath-breaking  .  .  .  shall 
be  commenced  within  six  months  after  the  offense  is 
committed,  and  not  after. 

No  work  or  business  shall  be  done  on  the  Sabbath- 
day,  except  the  ordinary  household  offices  or  other  work 
of  necessity  or  charity.  If  any  person  on  the  Sabbath- 
day  shall  himself  be  found  at  his  own  or  any  other  trade 
or  calling,  or  shall  employ  his  apprentices  or  other  per- 
son in  labor  or  other  business,  whether  the  same  be  for 


222  Sunday  Legislation, 

profit  or  amusement,  unless  such  as  is  permitted  above, 
he  shall  be  fined  not  less  than  two,  nor  more  than  fifty 
dollars  for  each  offense.  Every  person  or  apprentice  so 
employed  shall  be  deemed  a  separate  offense.  Persons 
who  are  members  of  a  religious  society  who  observe  as  a 
Sabbath  any  other  day  in  the  week  than  Sunday  shall 
not  be  liable  to  the  penalty  prescribed  in  this  section,  if 
they  observe  as  a  Sabbath  one  day  in  each  seven,  as 
herein  prescribed. 

If  any  person  shall  hunt  game  with  a  gun  or  dogs  on 
the  Sabbath-day,  he  shall  be  fined  not  less  than  five  nor 
more  than  fifty  dollars  for  each  offense. 

That  no  game  shall  be  permitted  to  be  played  on 
such  (billiard)  table,  on  the  Sabbath-day,  under  the  pen- 
alty of  an  absolute  forfeiture  of  the  license. 

"General  Statutes  of  Kentucky  (B.  and  F.),  1881," 
PP-  344,  747. 


Louisiana. 

Louisiana  had  no  Sunday  law  until  June,  1886. 
The  following-  law  was  then  passed : 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State 
of  Louisiana,  that  from  and  after  the  31st  day  of  Decem- 
ber, A.  D.  1886,  all  stores,  shops,  saloons,  and  all  places 
of  public  business,  which  are  or  may  be  licensed  under 
the  law  of  the  State  of  Louisiana,  or  under  any  parochial 
or  municipal  law  or  ordinance,  and  all  plantation-stores, 
are  hereby  required  to  be  closed  at  twelve  o'clock  on 
Saturday  nights,  and  to  remain  closed  continuously  for 
twenty-four  (24)  hours,  during  which  period  of  time  it 
shall  not  be  lawful  for  the  proprietors  thereof  to  give, 


United  States.  223 

trade,  barter,  exchange,  or  sell  any  of  the  stock  or  any 
article  of  merchandise  kept  in  any  such  establishment. 

Be  it  further  enacted,  etc.,  that  whosoever  shall  vio- 
late the  provisions  of  this  act,  for  each  offense  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and,  on  trial  and  con- 
viction, shall  pay  a  fine  of  not  less  than  twenty-five  dol- 
lars, nor  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  or  be 
imprisoned  for  not  less  than  ten  days  nor  more  than 
thirty  days,  or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court ;  pro- 
visions of  this  act  shall  not  apply  to  newsdealers,  keepers 
of  soda-fountains,  places  of  resort  for  recreation  and 
health,  watering-places  or  public  parks,  nor  prevent  the 
sale  of  ice. 

Be  it  further  enacted,  etc.,  that  the  provisions  of  this 
act  shall  not  apply  to  newspaper-offices,  printing-offices, 
book-stores,  drug-stores,  apothecary-shops,  undertaker's 
shops,  public  and  private  markets,  bakeries,  dairies, 
livery-stables,  railroads,  whether  steam  or  horse,  hotels, 
boarding-houses,  steam-boats  and  other  vessels,  ware- 
houses for  receiving  and  forwarding  freights,  restaurants, 
telegraph  offices  and  theatres  or  any  place  of  amusement, 
providing  no  intoxicating  liquors  are  sold  on  the  prem- 
ises ;  provided,  that  stores  may  be  opened  for  the  pur- 
pose of  selling  anything  necessary  in  sickness  and  for 
burial  purposes  ;  provided  that  nothing  in  this  act  shall 
be  construed  so  as  to  allow  hotels  or  boarding-houses  to 
sell  or  dispose  of  alcoholic  liquors,  except  wine  for  table 
use,  on  Sundays ;  and  provided  further  that  no  alcoholic, 
vinous  or  malt  liquors  shall  be  given,  traded,  or  bartered 
or  sold  or  delivered  in  any  public  place  on  said  day, 
except  when  actually  administered  or  prescribed  by  a 
practicing  physician  in  the  discharge  of  his  professional 
duties  in  case  of  sickness ;  in  such  case  the  physicians 


224  Sunday  Legislatioit. 

administering  the  intoxicating  liquors  may  charge  there- 
for. 

Be  it  further  enacted,  etc.,  that  all  laws  or  parts  of 
laws  contrary  to  or  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  here- 
of, be,  and  the  same  are  hereby,  repealed.  ("  Acts  of 
Louisiana  of  1886,"  pp.  28,  29.) 

Maine. 

Maine  prohibits  as  follows : 

Whoever,  on  the  Lord's  day,  keeps  open  his  shop, 
work-house,  warehouse,  or  place  of  business,  travels  or 
does  any  work,  labor,  or  business  on  that  day,  except 
works  of  necessity  or  charity ;  uses  any  sport,  game,  or 
recreation  ;  or  is  present  at  any  dancing  or  public  diver- 
sion, show  or  entertainment  encouraging  the  same,  shall 
be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  ten  dollars. 

Sunday  by  statute  extends  from  twelve  o'clock 
Saturday  night  to  twelve  o'clock  on  Sunday  night. 
Those  who  observe  the  seventh  day  are  allowed 
to  work  on  Sunday. 

Inn-keepers  and  victualers  who  permit  strangers 
or  lodgers  to  drink,  idle,  play,  or  perform  secular 
work  on  their  premises  are  finable  four  dollars  for 
each  person ;  on  second  conviction  ten  dollars  or 
less ;  the  third  conviction  annuls  their  license. 
Each  guest  so  offending  is  also  finable  to  the 
amount  of  four  dollars. 

The  hunting  or  destroying  of  birds  or  other 
game  is  prohibited.  No  civil  process  can  be  legal- 
ly served,  and  the  person  attempting  to  serve  one 


United  States, 


225 


is  liable  for  damages.  All  contracts  made  on  Sun- 
day are  void,  though  the  date  alone  is  not  suffi- 
cient testimony.  No  one  may  plead  a  contract 
void  without  restoring  the  consideration.  Tyth- 
ingmen,  or  any  other  person  may  prosecute  vio- 
lators, within  six  months. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  Maine  of  1883,"  pp.  330, 
687,  710,  906,  907. 

Maryland. 

All  forms  of  bodily  labor  by  self  or  by  others 
are  prohibited,  except  necessity  and  charity ;  all 
gaming,  fishing,  fowling,  hunting,  and  unlawful 
pastimes  or  recreations,  under  fine  of  five  dollars. 
Catching  oysters  on  Sunday,  day  or  night,  is 
finable  from  fifty  to  five  hundred  dollars.  Sell- 
ing, or  otherwise  disposing  of  tobacco,  cigars, 
candy,  soda  or  mineral  waters,  spirituous  or  fer- 
mented liquors  of  any  kind,  or  any  other  goods  or 
chattels,  incurs  a  fine  of  from  twenty  to  fifty  dol- 
lars for  first  offense  ;  for  second  offense,  from  fifty 
to  five  hundred  dollars,  together  with  imprison- 
ment from  ten  to  thirty  days,  and  the  loss  of 
*' license,"  which  can  not  be  renewed  for  twelve 
months,  to  the  party  offending,  or  for  the  place 
where  offense  has  been  so  committed. 

Any  person  convicted  more  than  twice  shall, 
for  each  occasion,  suffer  imprisonment  from  thirty 
to  sixty  days,  and  shall  be  fined  double  the  sum 
last  imposed,  and  suffer  loss  of  "  license  "  for  two 


226  Sunday  Legislation. 

years.  Dealers  in  milk  and  ice,  and  their  custom- 
ers, and  apothecaries  putting  w^bona-fide  prescrip- 
tions, are  exempt. 

It  is  also  forbidden  to  open  or  use  any  dancing- 
saloon,  barber-shop,  opera-house,  or  ten-pin  alley, 
under  penalty  of  lift}-  to  one  hundred  dollars  for 
first  offense ;  and  from  one  to  five  hundred  for  the 
second  offense,  with  imprisonment  from  ten  to 
thirty  days ;  for  each  conviction  after  the  second, 
the  fine  is  double  the  one  last  paid,  with  imprison- 
ment from  thirty  to  sixty  days.  In  1886,  the  per- 
mission to  deliver  ice  was  repealed. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  1878,"  pp.  148,   811,  812. 

Massachusetts. 

Massachusetts  prohibits  all  traveling,  all  work, 
labor,  or  business,  and  all  opening  of  business 
places — necessity  and  charity  excepted — and  all 
attendance  on,  or  participation  in,  any  sport, 
game,  or  play,  under  penalty  not  to  exceed  ten 
dollars.  Prohibition  of  traveling  does  not  consti- 
tute a  defense  in  case  of  "■  tort  or  injury  "  suffered 
by  one  traveling. 

No  place  of  public  entertainment  may  entertain 
any  except  travelers,  strangers,  or  lodgers,  nor 
allow  any  person  to  loiter,  idle,  play,  or  do  secular 
work  on  or  about  their  premises,  under  penalty  of 
fifty  dollars,  or  less,  for  each  person  so  entertained 
or  permitted ;  after  second  offense,  one  hundred 
dollars,  or  less ;  and  for  third  offense,  the  offender 


United  States,  227 

is  rendered  unable  to  hold  a  license,  in  addition  to 
the  fine.  Whoever  is  present  at  any  public  game 
or  diversion,  sacred  concerts  excepted,  unless  the 
same  be  licensed,  is  finable  five  dollars  or  less.  If 
a  keeper  of  any  place  of  public  entertainment  shall 
entertain,  or  permit  persons  not  travelers,  lodgers, 
or  strangers,  to  drink  and  spend  time  in  idleness 
on  his  premises,  he  incurs  a  penalty  of  five  dollars 
for  each  person. 

The  serving  of  a  civil  process  is  forbidden,  and 
the  party  attempting  such  service  is  liable  for 
damages.  Arrests  may  be  made  for  malicious 
mischief,  without  warrant.  Courts  may  not  open, 
but  prisoners  may  be  bailed.  Indecent  behavior 
in  any  house  of  public  worship  on  Sunday  incurs 
a  fine  of  ten  dollars.  Sheriffs,  grand  jurors,  and 
constables  are  bound  to  inquire  after  offenses 
against  the  Sunday  law,  and  report  the  same. 
Prosecutions  must  be  made  within  six  months. 
Any  person  keeping,  or  suffering  to  be  kept,  im- 
plements for  gaming,  such  as  are  used  for  hire, 
gain,  or  reward,  shall  be  fined  for  first  offense  not 
exceeding  one  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisonment 
in  house  of  correction  not  exceeding  six  months ; 
for  each  subsequent  offense,  imprisonment  not 
exceeding  one  year,  together  with  required  sure- 
ties for  good  behavior.  Discharging  fire-arms  in 
pursuit  of  game  or  for  amusement,  fine,  not  ex- 
ceeding ten  dollars  ;  the  same  penalty  for  fishing, 
in  any  way.  All  prosecutions  on  these  points  to 
be  within  thirty  days.     All  sale  of  liquors,  malt 


2  28  Sunday  Legislation, 

or  spirituous,  is  forbidden  between  the  hours  of 
12  at  night  and  6  A.  M.,  except  that  licensed  inn- 
holders  may  supply  liquor  to  guests.  Railroad 
commissioners  may  authorize  such  ''  through 
trains  "  as  they  deem  to  be  a  public  necessity  or 
convenience. 

"  Public   Statutes   of   Massachusetts,   1882,"  pp. 
427,  519-521,  1152,  1191- 

During  the  session  of  1887,  the  foregoing  law 
was  practically  annulled  by  the  following  amend- 
ments: 

Section  i  of  Chapter  98  of  the  public  statutes  is 
hereby  amended  by  striking  out  in  the  third  line  thereof 
the  words  *'or  upon  the  evening  next  preceding  the 
Lord's  day." 

Section  2  of  said  chapter  is  hereby  amended  by  add- 
ing at  the  end  thereof  the  following:  "but  notliing  in 
this  section  shall  be  held  to  prohibit  the  manufacture 
and  distribution  of  steam,  gas,  or  electricity  for  illumi- 
nating purposes,  heat,  or  motive  power,  nor  the  distribu- 
tion of  v/ater  for  fire  or  domestic  purposes,  nor  the  use 
of  the  telegraph  or  the  telephone,  nor  the  retail  sale  of 
drugs  and  medicines,  nor  articles  ordered  by  the  pre- 
scription of  a  physician,  nor  mechanical  appliances  used 
by  physicians  or  surgeons,  nor  the  letting  of  horses  and 
carriages,  nor  the  letting  of  yachts  and  boats,  nor  the 
running  of  steam  ferry-boats  on  established  routes,  of 
street-railroad  cars,  nor  the  preparation,  printing,  and 
publishing  of  newspapers,  nor  the  sale  and  delivery  of 
newspapers,  nor   the    retail    sale  and  delivery  of  milk, 


United  States,  229 

nor  the  transportation  of  milk,  nor  the  making  of  but- 
ter and  cheese,  nor  the  keeping  open  of  public  bath- 
houses, nor  the  making  or  selling  by  bakers  or  their  em- 
ployes of  bread  or  other  food  usually  dealt  in  by  them 
before  ten  of  the  clock  in  the  morning,  and  between  the 
hours  of  four  of  the  clock  and  half  past  six  of  the  clock 
in  the  evening. 

Section  13  of  Chapter  98  of  the  public  statutes  is 
hereby  amended  by  striking  out  the  word  "  travel"  there- 
from, and  Section  15  of  same  chapter  is  hereby  amended 
by  striking  out  the  word  "  through  "  therefrom,  and  by 
inserting  after  "  running,"  "  of  such  steamboat  lines  and." 

Section  3  of  Chapter  98  of  the  public  statutes,  and 
Chapter  82  of  the  acts  of  the  year  1886,  are  hereby  re- 
pealed. 

Approved  June  9,  1887. 

*'Acts  and  Resolves  of  Massachusetts,  1887,"  p. 
1000,  chap.  391. 

Michigan. 

Michigan  prohibits  keeping  open  any  place  of 
business,  shop,  warehouse,  or  work-house,  or  be- 
ing present  at,  or  taking  part  in,  any  public  di- 
version, show,  or  entertainment,  game,  or  pLay. 
Works  of  necessity  and  charity,  contracts  of  mar- 
riage, and  solemnization  of  the  same  are  excepted. 
Penalty,  ten  dollars,  or  less! 

No  place  of  public  entertainment  is  permitted 

to  entertain  any  but  actual  travelers,  nor  permit 

any  to  be  idle,   or   to   play  upon   the  premises, 

under  penalty  of  five  dollars  for  each  person  so 

10 


230  Sunday  Legislation. 

entertained  or  permitted  ;  ten  dollars  for  the  sec- 
ond offense,  and  loss  of  ''  license  "  for  third  of- 
fense ;  every  person  so  abiding  or  drinking  is 
finable  five  dollars.  No  one  may  be  present  at 
any  public  gathering — except  a  religious  meeting 
or  sacred  concert — under  penalty  of  five  dollars. 
Civil  process  served  on  Sunday  is  void,  and  one 
serving  it  is  liable  for  damages.  Time  of  Sunday, 
from  midnight  to  midnight.  Those  who  observe 
the  seventh  day  may  pursue  their  business  with- 
out disturbing  others.  Interrupting  religious 
worship  on  Sunday  incurs  penalty  from  two  to 
fifty  dollars,  or  imprisonment  for  thirty  days,  or 
less. 

All  selling  of  liquor  is  forbidden.  Courts  may 
not  be  opened  except  to  instruct  or  discharge  a 
jury,  receive  a  verdict,  or  such  criminal  cases  as 
demand  immediate  action.  Game  and  fish  war- 
dens may  make  arrests  on  Sunday. 

Howell's  "Annotated  Statutes  of  Michigan, 
1882,"  pp.  543-545>  598,  1838  ;  also,  "  Session 
Laws  of  1887,"  p.  28. 

Minnesota. 

Minnesota  defines  Sunday  from  midnight  to 
midnight.  Prohibits  all  labor  excepting  necessity 
or  charity,  which  includes  "  whatever  is  needful 
during  the  day  for  the  good  order,  health,  or  com- 
fort of  the  community."  Prohibits  all  shooting, 
hunting,  fishing,    horse-racing,  gaming,  or  other 


United  States,  231 

public  sports,  exercises,  or  shows,  and  all  noise 
disturbing  the  peace  of  the  day : 

All  trades,  manufactures,  and  mechanical  employ- 
ments, except  that  when  the  same  are  works  of  neces- 
sity, they  may  be  performed  on  that  day  in  their  usual 
and  orderly  manner,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  re- 
pose and  religious  liberty  of  the  community  : 

All  manner  of  public  selling  or  offering  for  sale  of 
any  property,  except  that  articles  of  food  may  be  sold 
and  supplied  at  any  time  before  ten  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  except  also  that  meals  may  be  sold  to  be  eaten 
on  the  premises  where  sold  or  served  elsewhere  by 
caterers  ;  and  prepared  tobacco  in  places  other  than 
where  spirituous  or  malt  liquors  or  wines  are  kept  or  of- 
fered for  sale :  and  fruit,  confectionery,  newspapers, 
drugs,  medicines,  and  surgical  appliances  may  be  sold  in 
a  quiet  and  orderly  manner  at  any  time  of  the  day  : 

All  service  of  legal  process  of  any  kind,  except  in 
cases  of  breach  of  the  peace,  or  apprehended  breach  of 
the  peace  when  sued  out  for  the  apprehension  of  a  per- 
son charged  with  crime,  or  except  where  such  service  is 
specially  authorized  by  statute. 

Sabbath-breaking  is  a  misdemeanor,  punishable  by  a 
fme  not  less  than  one  dollar  and  not  more  than  ten  dol- 
lars, or  by  imprisonment  in  a  county  jail  not  exceeding 
five  days,  or  by  both. 

"General  Statutes  of  Minnesota,  1883,"  p.  922. 

Mississippi. 

Mississippi  prohibits  all  labor  and  business,  in 
person,  or  by  proxy,  except  household  duties,  and 


232  Sunday  Legislation, 

works  of  necessity  and  charity,  under  penalty  of 
twenty  dollars,  or  less.  Railroading  and  steam- 
boating  are  exempt.  No  place  of  business,  shop, 
or  store,  except  apothecaries'  and  druggists',  may 
be  opened  for  sale  or  barter,  under  same  penalty 
as  above.  All  sorts  of  public  shows  and  games, 
horse-racing,  and  the  like,  are  prohibited  under 
penalty  of  fifty  dollars,  or  less.  Hunting  or  fish- 
ing, in  any  way,  incurs  a  penalty  of  from  five  to 
twenty  dollars.  Any  licensed  place  where  liquors 
are  sold,  keeping  open,  incurs  a  penalty  of  fifty  to 
one  hundred  dollars. 

Attachments  may  be  issued  and  executed  on 
Sunday.  Injunctions  may  be  granted  and  served, 
and  all  remedial  processes  may  be  undertaken, 
according  to  the  judgment  of  the  judge  or  chan- 
cellor, 

"Revised  Code  of   Mississippi,   1880,"   pp.   524, 
669,  769,  770. 

Missouri. 

Every  person  who  shall  either  labor  himself,  or  com- 
pel or  permit  his  apprentice,  or  servant,  or  any  other 
person  under  his  charge  or  control,  to  labor  or  perform 
any  work  other  than  the  household  offices  of  daily  neces- 
sity, or  other  works  of  necessity  or  charity,  or  who 
shall  be  guilty  of  hunting  game  or  shooting  on  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  commonly  called  Sunday,  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  fined  not  exceed- 
ing fifty  dollars. 

The  last  section  shall  not  extend  to  any  person  who 


United  States,  233 

is  a  member  of  a  religious  society  by  whom  any  other 
than  the  first  day  of  the  week  is  observed  as  a  Sabbath, 
so  that  he  observes  such  Sabbath  ;  nor  to  prohibit  any 
ferry-man  from  crossing  passengers  on  any  day  of  the 
week. 

Every  person  who  shall  bs  convicted  of  horse-racing, 
cock-fighting,  or  playing  at  cards  or  games  of  any  kind, 
on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  commonly  called  Sunday, 
shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  fined  not 
exceeding  fifty  dollars. 

Every  person  who  shall  expose  for  sale  any  goods, 
wares,  or  merchandise,  or  shall  keep  open  any  ale  or 
porter  house,  grocer}-  or  tippling  shop,  or  shall  sell  or 
retail  any  fermented  or  distilled  liquor  on  the  first  day 
of  the  week,  commonly  called  Sunday,  shall,  o^a  con- 
viction, be  adjudged  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  fined 
not  exceeding  fifty  dollars. 

The  last  section  shall  not  be  construed  to  prevent  the 
sale  of  any  drugs  or  medicines,  provisions  or  other  arti- 
cles of  immediate  necessity. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  Missouri,  1879,"  p.  274. 


Montana. 

Montana  prohibits  open  play-houses,  theatres, 
dance-houses,  prize-rings,  race-courses,  or  banking-- 
games  at  cards,  on  Sunday,  under  penalty  of  from 
one  to  one  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisonment  in 
county  jail  from  one  \.o  thirty  days,  or  both. 

*' Codified    Statutes   of   Montana  of   1871-72," 
p.  302. 


234  Sunday  Legislation. 

Nebraska. 

In  Nebraska,  no  court  can  be  opened,  nor  can 
any  judicial  business  be  transacted,  except  to  give 
instructions  to  a  jury  then  deliberating  on  their 
verdict ;  to  receive  a  verdict,  or  discharge  a  jury  ; 
to  exercise  the  powers  of  a  single  magistrate  in  a 
criminal  proceeding. 

Every  person  who  shall  sell  or  give  away  any 
malt,  spirituous,  or  vinous  liquors,  at  any  time 
during  the  first  day  of  the  week,  shall  forfeit  and 
pay  for  every  such  offense  the  sum  of  one  hundred 
dollars. 

If  any  person  of  the  age  of  fourteen  years  or 
upward  shall  be  found  on  the  first  day  of  the 
week  sporting,  rioting,  quarreling,  hunting,  fish- 
ing, or  shooting,  he  or  she  shall  be  fined  in  a  sum 
not  exceeding  twenty  dollars,  or  be  confined  in 
the  county  jail  for  a  term  not  exceeding  twenty 
days,  or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court.  Any 
person  of  the  age  of  fourteen  years  or  upward 
found  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  at  common 
labor  (work  of  necessity  and  charity  only  ex- 
cepted), may  be  fined  in  any  sum  not  exceeding 
five  dollars  nor  less  than  one  dollar ;  provided, 
nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  construed  to 
extend  to  those  who  conscientiously  do  observe 
the  seventh  day  of  the  week  as  the  Sabbath,  nor 
to  prevent  families  emigrating  from  traveling, 
watermen  from  landing  their  passengers,  super- 
intendents or  keepers  of  toll-bridges  or  toll-gates 


United  States,  235 

from  attending  and  superintending  the  same,  or 
ferry-men  from  conveying  travelers  over  the 
water,  or  persons  moving  their  families  on  such 
days,  or  to  prevent  railway  companies  from  run- 
ning necessary  trains. 

"Compiled  Statutes  of  Nebraska  of   1887,"  pp. 
328,  498,  839,  912. 

In  1879  cities  of  the  first  class  were  empow- 
ered to  regulate  Sunday  observance  within  their 
own  borders. 

"Laws  of  1879,"  p.  96. 

Nevada. 

Nevada  prohibits  all  open  play-houses,  theatres, 
race-courses,  and  all  games  of  chance  for  gain,  and 
all  noisy  amusements  on  Sunday.  No  judicial 
business  is  allowed,  except  where  juries  have  a 
case  in  charge.  Civil  service  may  be  executed  in 
cases  demanding  immediate  attention.  The  pen- 
alty for  violation  is  a  fine  of  not  less  than  thirty 
nor  more  than  two  hundred  dollars. 

"General  Statutes  of  Nevada,  1885,"  pp.    1077, 
1078. 

New  Hampshire. 

No  person  shall  do  any  work,  business,  or 
labor  of  his  secular  calling,  to  the  disturbance  of 
others,  works  of  necessity  and  charity  excepted, 
on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  commonly  called  the 


236  Sunday  Legislation, 

Lord's  day ;  nor  shall  any  person  use  any  play, 
game,  or  recreation  oA  that  day  or  any  part  there- 
of "  ;  the  penalty  being  a  line  of  six  dollars. 

No  person  shall  keep  open  his  shop,  ware- 
house, cellar,  restaurant,  or  workshop  for  the  re- 
ception of  compan}^  or  shall  sell  or  expose  for 
sale  any  merchandise  whatsoever  on  the  first  day 
of  the  w^eek,  commonly  called  the  Lord's  day  ;  but 
this  section  shall  not  be  construed  to  prevent  the 
sale  of  bread  from  bakeries,  or  drugs  and  medi- 
cines," or  the  entertaining  of  boarders,  or  the  sale 
of  milk  and  other  necessaries  of  life.  The  general 
penalty  is  a  fine  of  ten  dollars  or  thirty  days*  im- 
prisonment, or  both. 

Sunday  by  decision  extends  from  midnight  to 
midnisfht. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  New  Hampshire  of  1878," 
pp.  617,  618  ;  and  "  Laws  of  1883,"  p.  di. 


New  Jersey. 

The  Sunday  law  of  New  Jersey  is  very  elab- 
orate. 

It  prohibits  all  traveling  and  all  worldly  busi- 
ness on  land  or  water,  necessity  and  charity  ex- 
cepted ;  all  shooting,  hunting,  fishing,  in  all  forms 
— with  extra  penalties  for  seine-fishing — all  gam- 
ing, and  all  kinds  of  games  or  diversions,  under 
penalty  of  one  dollar.  Exposing  or  offering  any- 
thing for  sale  incurs  a  penalty  of  ten  dollars.  In 
default  of  fine,  or  when  the  same  is  not  collectable, 


United  States,  237 

imprisonment  under  ten  days.  Persons  traveling 
for  business  purposes  may  be  stopped  by  any  con- 
stable or  other  citizen,  and  detained  till  next  day. 
Railroads  may  run  one  passenger-train  each  way, 
to  accommodate  the  people  of  the  State.  No 
freighting  is  allowed,  except  of  milk.  Ferry-boats 
may  make  regular  trips.  No  private  transporta- 
tion is  allowed  by  wagons  or  vehicles  of  any  kind. 
No  stage  may  be  driven  through  any  part  of  the 
State  for  ordinary  purposes,  without  being  sub- 
ject to  arrest  and  detention  until  Monday,  at  ex- 
pense of  the  owner,  and  a  fine  of  eight  dollars. 

Civil  service  not  allowed  except  in  criminal 
cases  and  breach  of  the  peace,  disorderly  persons, 
and  men  charged  with  bastardy.  Any  effort  to 
serve  papers  not  excepted  makes  one  liable  t6 
action  for  damages. 

Those  who  observe  the  seventh  day  are  ex- 
empt from  the  general  provisions  concerning 
labor,  if  their  labor  be  done  on  their  own  premises, 
and  without  disturbing  others;  also  from  civil 
service,  except  in  criminal  cases  ;  from  labor  on 
highways,  and  from  military  duty  on  Saturday. 
They  may  not  openly  expose  merchandise  for  sale 
on  Sunday. 

The  selling  of  liquors  on  Sunday,  under  a  gen- 
eral license,  makes  one  liable  to  arrest  for  keeping 
a  "  disorderly  house,"  with  such  pains  and  penal- 
ties as  those  imposed  on  "  keepers  of  gambling- 
houses,  houses  of  prostitution,  and  other  common 
nuisances."      Inns  and   taverns  are  forbidden  to 


238  Sunday  Legislation, 

sell  any  intoxicating  liquors,  under  the  same  pen- 
alty as  for  selling  without  a  license  on  other  da3^s, 
and  an  added  fine  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars 
and   costs   of    prosecution.      Hunting    with   any 
weapons,  with  or  without  dogs,  or  taking  game  in 
any  trap  or  snare  or  devise,  incurs  a  penalty  of 
twenty-five  dollars  for  every  offense.     Those  who 
keep  Saturday  may  hunt  on  their  own  premises. 
"Revised  Statutes  of  New  Jersey,  1877,"  pp.  238, 
450,  495,  1227-1231,   1234;    also,  "Session 
Laws  of  1884,"  p.  218,  and  of  1885,  p.  179. 

New   Mexico. 

Any  person  or  persons  who  shall  be  found  on  the 
first  day  of  the  week,  called  Sunday,  engaged  in  any 
games  or  sports,  or  in  horse-racing,  cock-fighting,  danc- 
ing, or  in  any  other  manner  disturbing  any  worshiping 
assembly,  or  private  family,  or  in  buying  or  selling  any 
goods,  wares,  or  merchandise,  chattels  or  liquors,  or  any 
other  kind  of  property,  or  in  holding  or  attending  any 
public  meeting  or  public  exhibition,  except  for  religious 
worship  or  instruction ;  or  engage  in  any  labor,  except 
works  of  necessity,  charity,  or  mercy  ;  or  who  shall  keep 
open  any  store,  shop,  or  office,  or  other  place  of  business, 
or  place  for  the  display  of  goods,  wares,  or  merchandise, 
shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars, 
nor  less  than  ten  dollars,  for  the  first  offense,  and  for  the 
second  or  any  subsequent  offense,  by  a  fine  of  not  less 
than  twenty-five  dollars,  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, or  by  imprisonment  of  not  less  than  five,  nor  more 
than  twenty  days,  in  the  discretion  of  the  court  or  jus- 


United  States,  239 

tice,  upon  conviction  before  any  district  court,  or  justice 
of  the  peace ;  one  half  to  the  court,  and  one-half  to  the 
school  fund. 

Provided,  that  travelers,  keepers  of  ferry-boats,  livery- 
stables,  hotels  and  restaurants,  and  barbers,  may  pursue 
their  vocation  ;  and  that  butchers  and  bakers  may  sell 
meat  and  bread  and  like  articles,  but  not  liquors  or  gen- 
eral merchandise  ;  apothecaries  may  sell  and  deliver 
drugs,  medicines,  and  surgical  instruments  on  that  day. 

It  shall  always  be  lawful  to  irrigate  fields,  or  to  re- 
move grain  and  other  products,  in  cases  of  necessity. 
Civil  process  may  not  be  served,  except  in  cases  where 
there  is  liability  to  loss  or  serious  inconvenience. 

Time  of  Sunday,  "  sunrise  to  midnight  of  the  same 
day." 

"Compiled  Laws  of  New  Mexico  of,  1884,"  pp. 
490,  491. 

New  York. 

Under  the  general  Sunday  law  of  New  York, 
no  civil  process,  warrant,  etc.,  can  be  served  or 
executed,  except  in  cases  of  real  or  apprehended 
"  breach  of  the  peace,"  or  such  crimes  and  misde- 
meanors as  are  connected  with  the  law  itself.  It 
also  provides  that  *'  there  shall  be  no  sporting, 
hunting,  fishing,  playing,  horse-racing,  frequenting 
tippling-houses,  or  unlawful  exercises  or  pastimes, 
on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  called  Sunday;  nor 
shall  any  person  travel  on  that  day,  unless  in  cases 
of  charity  or  necessity,  or  in  going  to  or  from 
some  church  or  place  of  public  worship  within 


240  Sunday  Legislation, 

the  distance  of  twenty  miles,  or  in  going  for  medi- 
cal aid  or  medicines,  or  in  visiting  the  sick  and 
returning ;  or  in  carrying  the  mail  of  the  United 
States,  or  in  going  express  by  order  of  some  pub- 
lic officer,  or  in  removing  one's  family  or  house- 
hold furniture  when  such  removal  was  com- 
menced on  some  other  day.  Nor  shall  there  be 
any  servile  labor  or  recreation  or  working  on  that 
day,  except  works  of  necessity  and  mercy,  unless 
done  by  some  person  who  uniformly  keeps  the 
last  day  of  the  week,  called  Saturday,  as  holy 
time. 

The  penalty  for  each  offense  is  one  dollar  in  the  case 
of  persons  over  fourteen  years  of  age. 

The  selling  of  goods,  fruits,  herbs,  etc.,  on  Sunday, 
except  meats,  milk,  and  fish,  before  nine  o'clock,  is  for- 
bidden. Articles  exposed  for  sale  on  that  day  are  for- 
feited for  the  use  of  the  poor,  etc. 

No  keeper  of  any  inn  or  tavern,  or  of  any  ale  or 
porter  house,  or  grocery,  or  any  person  authorized  to 
retail  strong  or  spirituous  drinks,  shall  on  Sunday  sell  or 
dispose  of  any  ale,  porter,  strong  or  spirituous  drinks, 
except  to  lodgers  or  persons  legally  traveling  on  that  day 
according  to  law,  under  penalty  of  two  dollars  and  a  half 
for  each  offense. 

A  law  of  special  application  to  the  cit}^  of  New 
York,  passed  in  i860,  forbids  various  kinds  of  ex- 
hibitions on  Sunday,  under  heavy  penalties. 

A  law  passed  in  1872  forbids  processions  on 
Sunday,  except  funeral  processions  and  such  as  go 


United  States.  241 

from  churches  in  connection  with  religious  serv- 
ices there,  on  penalty  of  twenty  dollars. 

A  special  act  forbids  "  shooting-,  hunting,  or 
trapping  "  on  Sunday,  under  penalty  of  not  less 
than  ten  dollars,  nor  more  than  twenty-five,  for 
each  offense,  or  imprisonment  for  not  less  than 
five  nor  more  than  twenty  days. 

Those  who  conscientiously  observe  Saturday 
are  free  from  the  general  law  against  labor,  as 
noted  above.  They  are  also  free  from  jury  duty 
and  from  military  service  on  that  day,  except  in 
cases  of  public  peril.  Any  person  who  know- 
ingly or  maliciously  procures  the  service  of  a  civil 
process  upon  one  keeping  Saturday  from  a  jus- 
tice's court,  or  makes  one  returnable  on  that  day, 
is  made  subject  to  a  fine  of  one  hundred  dollars, 
or  imprisonment  for  thirty  days,  or  both. 

Prosecutions  under  the  Sunday  law  must  be 
made  within  twenty  days.  Civil  process  may  be 
served  in  special  cases  and  emergencies. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  New  York  to  1881,"  seventh 
edition,  vol.  iii,  1882,  pp.  1975,  1976,  2106, 
2148,  and  vol.  i,  p.  732. 

In  1882,  a  special  act,  covering  the  city  and 
county  of  New  York,  was  passed,  forbidding  all 
shows — theatrical,  operatic,  etc. — under  penalty 
of  five  hundred  dollars,  and  other  penalties  con- 
nected with  the  occupancy  of  the  property  where 
such  shows  are  held ;  also  one  against  noisy  pa- 
rades and  processions  on  Sunday,  under  penalty 


242  Sunday  Legislation, 

of  twenty  dollars  or  less,  or   imprisonment  ten 
days  or  less,  as  the  court  may  adjudge. 

**  Session  Laws  of  New  York,  1882,"  pp.  472,  484. 

In  1883  the  Sunday  law  of  New  York  State 
was  much  weakened  by  several  amendments  to 
the  penal  code.  Under  these  amendments  "  works 
of  necessity  and  charity  include  whatever  is  need- 
ful during  the  day  for  the  good  order,  health,  or 
comfort  of  the  community.  .  .  .  Trades,  manufact- 
ures, agricultural  or  mechanical  employments," 
when  necessary,  may  be  performed  "  in  their  usual, 
ordinary  manner,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the 
repose  and  religious  liberty  of  the  community.  .  .  . 
Articles  of  food  may  be  sold  and  supplied  at  any 
time  before  10  A.  M.  .  .  .  meals  on  the  premises  or 
elsewhere,  prepared  tobacco,  fruit,  confectionery, 
newspapers,  drugs,  medicines,  and  surgical  ap- 
pliances may  be  sold  at  any  time  during  the  day.'* 
"  Session  Laws  of  1883,"  p.  541. 

In  1885  an  act  was  passed,  making  it  a  sufficient 
defense  against  prosecution  for  work  or  labor  on 
Sunday,  that  the  offender  "  uniformly  keeps 
another  day  as  holy  time,  and  does  not  disturb 
others  in  keeping  Sunday  holy  " 

"Session  Laws  of  1885,"  p.  875. 

North   Carolina. 

Prohibits  all  ordinary  work  or  business,  on 
land  or  water,  necessity  and  charity  excepted ;  all 
hunting,  fishing,  fowling,  games,  sports,  or  plays, 


United  States.  243 

by  persons  above  fourteen  years  of  age,  under 
penalty  of  one  dollar.  No  intoxicating  liquors, 
malt,  distilled,  or  other,  may  be  sold,  except  upon 
the  prescription  of  a  physician  for  medicinal  pur- 
poses, under  fine  or  imprisonment,  at  the  option  of 
the  court. 

In  1879  it  was  enacted  that  no  railroad  com- 
pany should  run  any  locomotive  or  cars  within 
the  State,  except  those  carrying  United  States 
mail,  or  passengers  and  mails ;  this  law  covered 
the  time  from  sunrise  to  sunset ;  trains  in  transitu 
being  permitted  to  run  until  9  A.  M.,  in  order  to 
reach  usual  terminus,  or  the  shops  of  the  com- 
pany. In  1885  similar  permission  was  granted  to 
trains  made  up  exclusively  of  perishable  freight 
and  live-stock.  Loading  and  unloading  freight- 
cars  are  forbidden.  Railroad  officials,  offending 
in  any  of  these  particulars,  may  be  indicted  in  each 
county  through  which  the  trains  pass,  and  fined 
not  less  than  five  hundred  dollars  for  each  offense. 
Fishing  with  nets  of  any  kind  not  fastened  to 
stakes  is  forbidden  except  in  the  counties  of  Car- 
teret and  Onslow  (where  *'  established  seines " 
may  be  used),  under  penalty  of  two  hundred  to 
five  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisonment  for  twelve 
months. 

*'  Revised  Statutes  of  North  Carolina,   1873,"  p. 

835;  "Session   Laws  of    i876-*77,"  pp.  83, 

84  ;  ''  Session  Laws  of  1879,"  pp.  182,  359  ; 

"Laws   or   1883,"   p.  508,   and    "  Laws    of 

1885,"  pp.  141,  261. 


244  Sunday  Legislation, 

Ohio. 

Prohibits  all  persons  over  fourteen  years  of  age 
from  sporting,  rioting,  quarreling,  hunting,  fish- 
ing, or  shooting  on  Sunday,  under  penalty  of  not 
more  than  twenty  dollars  or  imprisonment  not 
more  than  twenty  days,  or  both  ;  complaint  to  be 
made  within  ten  days.  Common  labor  is  forbid- 
den under  penalty  of  not  more  than  five  dollars ; 
from  this  provision  are  exempted  those  who  con- 
scientiously observe  the  seventh  day,  families  emi- 
grating, watermen  landing  passengers,  or  attend- 
ing toll-bridges.  Whoever  sells  or  barters  any 
spirituous  liquors  incurs  a  fine  of  five  dollars  or 
less.  Ordinary  arrests  can  not  be  made  on  Sun- 
day. 

"Revised  Statutes  of  Ohio  of  1886,"  vol.  ii,  pp. 
1149,  1463,  1478. 

Oregon. 

Prohibits  the  opening  of  any  place  of  business 
for  labor  or  traffic,  any  place  of  amusement,  or 
any  tippling-shop,  under  penalty  of  five  to  fifty 
dollars.  Open  saloons,  which  are  not  taverns, 
are  forbidden  under  penalty  of  ten  to  twenty-five 
dollars.  The  general  provision  excepts  drug- 
stores, doctors'  shops,  undertakers'  shops,  livery- 
stables,  butchers,  and  bakers.  Also,  all  circum- 
stances of  necessity  and  mercy  may  be  offered  in 
defense ;  courts  may  be  opened  to  instruct  a  de- 
liberating jury,  receive  a  verdict,  discharge  a  jury, 


United  States.  245 

or  in  criminal  cases.  A  civil  process  is  void,  and 
an  attempt  to  serve  such  process  is  punishable 
by  a  fine  of  from  five  to  fifty  dollars. 

"Hill's   Annotated    Laws  of  Oregon,  1887,"  pp. 
957'  959>  962. 

Pennsylvania. 

Under  the  general  law  of  Pennsylvania  no  civil 
process  can  be  served,  except  in  case  of  treason, 
felony,  or  breach  of  the  peace.  Canals  and  rail- 
roads can  not  be  compelled  to  attend  their  works, 
in  order  to  expedite  travel.  All  worldly  labor  or 
employment  or  business  whatsoever  —  necessity 
and  charity  excepted — is  forbidden ;  also  unlaw- 
ful games,  shooting,  hunting,  or  any  diversions 
whatsoever,  under  penalty  of  four  dollars.  The 
general  provision  allows  for  preparing  necessary 
food,  landing  passengers  by  water-men,  removing 
families  in  transitiCy  delivering  milk  and  other  ne- 
cessaries of  life,  before  9  A.  M.  and  after  5  p.  M.  All 
prosecutions  to  be  made  within  seventy-two  hours. 

Persons  found  drinking  or  tippling  in  public 
houses  or  places  shall  pay  one  shilling  and  six- 
pence to  any  constable,  on  demand,  for  each  of- 
fense ;  and  all  constables  are  bound  to  search  sus- 
pected places  for  offenders,  and  disperse  them 
when  found.  If  they  refuse,  the  officer  may  bring 
them  before  the  nearest  justice  of  the  peace,  who 
may  place  them  in  the  stocks,  or  bind  them  to 
their  good  behavior,  at  will. 

If  the  keeper  of  any  public  place  shall  counte- 


246  Sunday  Legislation. 

nance  or  tolerate  any  breaking  of  the  law  on  his 
premises,  he  ma}^  be  arrested  on  the  view  of  any 
one  magistrate,  on  his  own  confession,  or  the  testi- 
mony of  one  witness,  and  fined  ten  shillings  for 
each  offense.  Food  and  drink  for  travelers  and 
lodgers,  in  moderation,  and  for  refreshment  only, 
are  excepted,  the  magistrate  to  judge  what  "  mod- 
eration "  is,  if  complaint  be  made.  It  is  also  un- 
lawful to  sell,  trade,  or  barter  any  spirituous,  malt, 
or  fermented  liquors,  or  for  the  keeper  of  any 
public  place  to  allow  any  one  to  be  drunk  on  or 
within  his  premises,  under  penalty  of  fifty  dollars. 
Hunting,  shooting,  fishing,  and  trapping  are 
forbidden  under  penalty  of  five  to  twenty-five 
dollars.  Court  decisions  allow  justices  to  make 
forcible  entry  for  a  better  view  of  offender ;  make 
a  conviction  valid,  though  it  does  not  state  the 
time  when,  nor  place  where  the  work  was  done ; 
and  refuses  exemption  to  those  who  observe  the 
seventh  day. 

"  Digest  of  the  Laws  of  Pennsylvania,"  Brightley's 
Purdon,  1883,  pp.  835,  1571-1573,  2232,  and 
*' Criminal  Code,"  Shields,  1883,  pp.  242,  243. 


Rhode  Island. 

Prohibits  all  ordinary  labor,  business,  or  work; 
all  games,  sports,  play,  and  recreation,  or  the  per- 
mitting of  these  by  parents  or  guardians — neces- 
sity and  charity  excepted — under  fine  of  five  dol- 
lars for  the  first  offense,  and  ten  for  all  subsequent 


United  States.  247 

offenses ;  to  employ  or  encourage  the  servant  of 
another  person  incurs  the  same  penalties.  All 
complaints  to  be  made  within  ten  days.  Jews  and 
Christians  who  keep  the  seventh  day  may  pursue 
their  ordinary  avocations,  but  may  not  open  shops 
or  stores,  or  lade,  unlade,  or  fit  out  vessels,  nor 
work  at  the  smith's  business  or  any  mechanical 
trade  (except  in  the  compact  villages  in  the  towns 
of  Westerly  and  Hopkinton),  nor  fish,  nor  hunt  in 
public  places,  nor  off  from  their  own  possessions. 
In  case  of  dispute  as  to  who  is  entitled  to  the 
benefit  of  these  exceptions,  a  certificate  from  a 
regular  pastor  or  priest,  or  from  any  three  mem- 
bers of  any  Sabbath-keeping  church  or  society, 
showing  the  party  to  be  a  regular  member  of  the 
same,  shall  be  conclusive  evidence. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  1882,"  pp.  686,  687. 

South  Carolina. 

Prohibits  all "  worldly  '*  business,  work,  or  labor 
— necessity  and  charity  excepted — by  any  person 
of  fifteen  years  or  upward,  under  a  penalty  of  one 
dollar.  All  goods,  wares,  fruits,  chattels,  etc., 
showed  forth  or  cried  for  sale  are  forfeited.  No 
public  sports  or  pastimes  whatever  are  allowed 
under  penalty  of  one  dollar ;  trial  justices,  within 
their  respective  counties,  may  summon  any  of- 
fender on  their  own  view,  or  confesson  of  the 
party,  or  testimony  of  one  or  more  witnesses ;  and 
may  seize  goods  and  impose  penalties.     Persons 


248  Su7iday  Legislation. 

keeping  gaming-tables,  and  permitting  games 
thereon,  on  Sunda}^,  are  liable  to  fine  of  fifty  dol- 
lars. No  civil  process  may  be  served  except  for 
felony,  treason,  or  breach  of  peace.  Railroad 
corporations  are  prohibited  from  running  trains, 
loading  or  unloading  cars — except  mail-trains,  and 
construction  or  other  trains  made  necessary  by 
extraordinary  emergencies.  Trains  delayed  by 
accident  may  run  to  the  place  where  they  are  ac- 
customed to  rest.  Willful  violation  of  these  pro- 
visions incurs  a  fine  of  five  hundred  dollars. 

**  General  Statutes  of  South  Carolina,  1882,"  pp. 
203,  442,  443,  483,  484,  728. 

Tennessee. 

Prohibits  all ''  common  avocations,"  by  persons 
or  children  or  servants — real  necessity  and  charity 
excepted — under  penalty  of  three  dollars.  Hunt- 
ing, fishing,  gaming,  or  being  drunk,  incurs  the 
same  penalty.  Any  justice  of  the  peace  may  have 
jurisdiction.  Any  licensed  grocer  or  other  per- 
son who  retails  spirituous  liquors  on  Sunday,  is 
liable  to  fine  or  imprisonment  at  the  discretion  of 
the  court.  The  constitution  of  Tennessee  pro- 
vides that,  in  time  of  peace,  no  person  shall  be  re- 
quired to  perform  any  public  service  on  any  day 
which  he  observes  religiously  as  a  day  of  rest. 
Private  contracts  are  valid  if  made  outside  of 
one's  regular  business. 

"Code  of  Tennessee,"  M.  and  V.,  1884,  pp.  397, 
1085. 


United  States,  249 

Texas. 

Prohibits  labor  by  one's  self,  or  compel- 
ling employes  or  apprentices  to  labor,  under 
penalty  of  ten  to  fifty  dollars.  This  clause  is 
practically  nullified  by  the  next,  which  is  as 
follows : 

The  preceding  article  shall  not  apply  to  household 
duties,  works  of  necessity  or  charity  ;  nor  to  necessary 
work  on  farms  or  plantations  in  order  to  prevent  the  loss 
of  any  crop  ;  nor  the  running  of  steamboats  and  other 
water-cra.fts,  rail-cars,  wagon-trains,  common  carriers, 
nor  to  the  delivery  of  goods  by  them,  or  the  receiving  or 
storing  of  said  goods  by  the  parties  or  their  agents  to 
whom  said  goods  are  delivered ;  nor  to  stages  carrying 
the  United  States  mail  or  passengers ;  nor  to  foundries, 
sugar-mills,  or  herders  who  have  a  herd  of  stock  actu- 
ally gathered  and  under  herd  ;  nor  to  persons  traveling, 
nor  to  ferry-men  or  keepers  of  toll-bridges,  keepers  of 
hotels,  boarding-houses,  and  restaurants  and  their  serv- 
ants ;  nor  to  keepers  of  livery-stables  and  their  servants ; 
nor  to  any  person  who  conscientiously  believes  that  the 
seventh  or  any  other  day  of  the  week  ought  to  be  ob- 
served as  the  Sabbath,  and  who  actually  refrains  from 
business  and  labor  on  that  day,  for  religious  reasons. 

Horse-racing-,  bowling,  match-shooting,  or  any 
species  of  gaming  for  money,  or  other  considera- 
tions, within  the  limits  of  any  city  or  town,  incur 
a  fine  of  twenty  to  fifty  dollars.  Merchants  and 
traders  are  forbidden  to  sell  or  barter  goods  or 


250  Simday  Legislation, 

wares  under  the  same  penalty  ;  provisions  before 
9  A.  M.  are  exempt,  and  drugs  and  medicines  dur- 
ing the  whole  day. 

"  Revised  Statutes  of  Texas,  1879,"  Criminal  Code, 
pp.  26,  27. 


Utah  Territory. 

Prohibits  all  bull,  bear,  cock,  or  prize-fighting ; 
horse-racing,  circus  shows,  open  gambling-houses 
or  saloons,  barbarous  or  noisy  amusements,  thea- 
tres, dance-houses,  musical  or  operatic  perform- 
ances, spectacles,  or  representations  where  wines 
or  any  intoxicating  drinks  are  sold  or  given 
away ;  also  selling  or  purchasing  tickets  of  ad- 
mission to  any  such  show  or  entertainment,  di- 
rectly or  indirectly;  any  infringement  on  these 
provisions  is  a  '■'■  misdemeanor."  Opening  of  any 
business  place  for  business  purposes  incurs  a  fine 
of  from  five  to  one  hundred  dollars.  This  pro- 
vision exempts  hotels,  boarding-houses,  baths, 
restaurants,  taverns,  livery-stables,  and  retail  drug- 
stores, when  used  for  legitimate  purposes,  and 
manufacturing  establishments,  which  are  usually 
kept  in  continual  operation.  Unnecessary  busi- 
ness or  labor  incur  a  fine  of  twenty  dollars  or 
less.  Time  covered,  from  midnight  to  mid- 
night. 

"  Compiled  Laws  of  Utah,  1876,"  pp.  599,  600. 


United  States.  251 

Vermont. 
Enacts  as  follows : 

A  person  who,  between  twelve  o'clock  Saturday  night 
and  sunset  on  the  following  Sunday,  exercises  any  busi- 
ness or  employment,  except  such  only  as  works  of  neces- 
sity and  charity ;  or  is  present  at  any  public  assembly, 
except  such  as  is  held  for  social  and  religious  worship 
and  moral  instruction  ;  or  travels,  Except  from  necessity 
or  charity ;  or  visits  from  house  to  house,  except  from 
motives  of  humanity  or  charity,  or  for  moral  or  religious 
edification  ;  or  holds  or  resorts  to  any  ball  or  dance,  or 
uses  or  exercises  any  game,  sport,  or  play ;  or  resorts  to 
any  tavern,  inn,  or  house  of  entertainment  for  amuse- 
ment or  recreation,  shall  be  fined  not  more  than  two 
dollars. 

A  person  who  hunts,  shoots,  or  pursues,  takes  or  kills 
wild  game  or  other  birds  or  animals,  or  discharges  fire- 
arras,  except  in  the  just  defense  of  person  or  property, 
or  in  the  performance  of  military  or  police  duty,  on 
Sunday,  shall  be  fined  ten  dollars,  one  half  to  go  to  the 
person  who  makes  the  complaint  and  one  half  to  the 
State. 

Service  of  legal  process  is  void,  except  in  cases 
of  escape,  apprehending  principal  in  matters  of 
bail,  treason,  felony,  and  breach  of  peace. 

^'  Revised  Laws  of  Vermont,  1880,"  pp.  220,  826. 

Virginia. 

Prohibits  all  labor  and  business  in  person  or  by 
proxy — household  and   other  work  of  necessity 


252  Su7iday  Legislation. 

and  charity  excepted — under  penalty  of  two  dol- 
lars for  each  offense.  This  provision  excepts  car- 
rying the  mails,  passengers  and  their  baggage,  and 
those  who  observe  the  seventh  day,  if  they  do  not 
disturb  others. 

A  Sunday  liquor  law  was  enacted  in  1874;  it 
was  modified  in  1880.  It  forbids  all  opening  of 
bar-rooms,  or  other  places  where  liquor  is  sold, 
between  twelve  midnight,  of  Saturday,  and  sun- 
rise on  Monday,  under  penalty  of  ten  to  five  hun- 
dred dollars.  This  does  not  apply  to  cities  of 
ten  thousand  inhabitants  or  upward,  since  these 
have  power  to  regulate  the  traffic  within  their 
borders. 

In  1884  a  law  was  enacted  forbidding  all  rail- 
road work,  running,  loading  or  unloading  cars  or 
trains,  except  for  the  relief  of  wrecked  or  disabled 
trains,  carrying  United  States  mail,  with  or  with- 
out passengers,  passenger  trains  without  mails, 
trains  loaded  with  live-stock,  or  with  perishable 
articles  which  would  be  endangered  by  delay,  and 
other  freight  with  perishable  goods  ;  time,  sunrise 
to  sunrise.  Trains  starting  before  midnight  on 
Saturday  may  run  until  9  A.  M.  on  Sunday  to 
reach  terminus,  or  shops  of  the  compan}^  Pen- 
alty, fifty  to  one  hundred  dollars  in  each  county 
or  corporation  where  trains  run. 

"Code  of  Virginia,  1873,"  p.  1209;  "Laws  of 
1879-80,"  p.  220  ;  *'  Laws  of  1883-84,"  pp. 
743'  744. 


United  States,  253 

Washington  Territory. 

Prohibits  open  theatres,  race-courses,  cock-pits, 
games  of  chance  for  gain,  noisy  amusements,  open 
billiard  or  drinking  saloons,  and  the  sale  of  intoxi- 
cating liquors  as  a  beverage.  Also  prohibits  all 
judicial  business,  except  in  the  case  of  deliberating 
juries ;  civil  service  may  be  issued  in  criminal 
cases.  Attachments  and  injunctions  may  be  is- 
sued and  served  under  the  civil  code,  justices*- 
practice  act,  and  probate-practice  act.  General 
penalty,  fine  from  thirty  to  two  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars. 

All  open  places  for  trade  or  sale  of  goods,  or 
any  business  whatever,  are  forbidden,  except 
hotels — these  may  not  sell  liquor — drug-stores, 
livery-stables,  and  undertakers  ;  penalty,  twenty- 
five  to  one  hundred  dollars.  All  public  officers 
are  bound  to  report  violations  of  this  act  to  the 
nearest  justice  of  the  peace,  under  penalty  of 
twenty-five  to  one  hundred  dollars.  Law  took 
effect  in  January,  1882. 

"Washington  Code,  1881,"  pp.  227,  351,  352. 

West  Virginia. 

Prohibits  all  labor  or  business  by  one's  self  or 
minor  children  or  servants,  except  household  and 
other  works  of  necessity  and  works  of  charity, 
under  penalty  of  five  dollars  for  each  offense; 
hunting,  shooting,  or  carrying  fire-arms  openly  to 


2  54  Sunday  Legislation. 

the  annoyance  of  the  public  is  punishable  by  fine 
of  from  five  to  twenty  dollars.  Officers  of  the 
State  or  United  States,  carrying  arms  lawfully 
are  excepted.  Transporting  of  the  mails  and  of 
passengers  with  their  baggage  is  excepted  from 
the  foregoing  provisions,  as  are  those,  also,  who 
conscientiously  observe  the  seventh  day  by  ab- 
staining from  labor;  but  they  may  not  compel 
those  not  of  their  faith  to  do  secular  business,  nor 
may  they  disturb  others.  No  contract  is  void  be- 
cause made  on  Sunday.  No  civil  process  may  be 
served,  except  in  case  of  those  escaping  from  cus- 
tody, or  in  cases  specially  provided  for  by  law. 
Attachments  may  be  issued  and  executed  if  de- 
fendant is  actually  removing  goods.  Matters  con- 
nected with  ''  inquests  "  may  be  attended  to  as  on 
any  other  day.  Persons  holding  State  license  to 
sell  liquors  who  sell  or  give  away  liquors  on  Sun- 
day are  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  subject  to  a 
fine  of  from  twenty  to  one  hundred  dollars.  In 
the  matter  of  adjourning  courts,  papers  coming 
due,  etc.,  Sunday  is  treated  as  other  legal  holi- 
days. 

"  Code  of  West  Virginia  of  1887,"  Warth,  pp.  237, 
298,  726,  902. 


Wisconsin. 

Prohibits  all  opening  of  business  places,  etc., 
and  all  manner  of  labor  or  business,  except  necessity 
and  charity,  and  all  attendance  on,  or  participating 


United  States,  255 

in,  any  dancing,  diversion,  show,  entertainment, 
game,  or  play,  under  penalty  of  ten  dollars  or  less. 
No  civil  process  can  be  served  or  executed.  Time 
covered  by  the  law  is  from  midnight  to  midnight. 
Those  observing  the  seventh  day  are  exempted 
from  the  general  provisions  if  they  do  not  will- 
fully disturb  others.  Giving  away  or  selling  in- 
toxicating liquors  incurs  a  penalty  of  from  five  to 
twenty  dollars,  or  imprisonment  in  county  jail 
thirty  days  or  less,  or  both.  Court  decisions  for- 
bid collecting  the  value  of  liquor  sold  on  Sunday. 
Notices  published  in  Sunday  papers  are  legal. 
Violation  of  Sunday  law  forms  no  defense,  in  case 
of  injury.  The  public  may  use  highwaj^s  in  case 
of  necessity,  and  every  man  may  judge  when  it  is 
necessary.  Contracts  made  on  Sunday  can  not  be 
enforced. 

*' Revised  Statutes  of  Wisconsin,  1878,"  pp.  471, 

1083,  and  supplement  thereto  from  1879  to 

1884,  pp.  337,  835,  875. 


Wyoming  Territory. 

Wyoming  has  little  legislation  concerning 
Sunday.  In  the  general  acts  against  lewdness 
and  immorality,  the  following  clause  occurs  : 

If  any  person  shall  be  guilty  of  open  lewdness,  or 
other  notorious  act  of  public  indecency,  tending  to  de- 
bauch the  public  morals  ;  or  shall  keep  open  any  gaming- 
house on  the  Sabbath  day  or  night,  he  shall,  on  convic- 


256  Sunday  Legislation. 

tion,  be  fined  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars,  or  im- 
prisoned in  a  county  jail  not  exceeding  six  months. 

The   city  of  Cheyenne  is  empowered  by  its 
charter  ''  to  close  all  places  of  business  and  amuse- 
ment on  Sunday,  and  to  prohibit  and  suppress  the 
sale  of  spirituous  liquors  on  any  day  of  election." 
"  Compiled  Laws   of  Wyoming,   1876,"  pp.  181, 
270. 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Alabama,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  ordinary  work  by  self  or  repre- 
sentative, hunting,  gaming,  racing,  open  places  of  business,  buy- 
ing, selling,  bartering — exceptions  :  necessity,  comfort,  charity, 
druggists,  railroads,  and  other  common  carriers  ;  Sunday  con- 
tracts void,  except  in  the  interest  of  religion,  necessity,  or  mercy, 
attachments  permitted  if  debtor  is  absconding  ;  penalty  from  $io 
to  $100,  with  possible  imprisonment,  2 10-2 11. 

Alfred,  King  of  Wessex,  laiu  of,  doubles  the  fine  for  stealing  on  Sun- 
day, Yule,  Easter,  Holy  Thursday,  or  rogation  days  ;  prohibits 
Sunday  marketing  and  work  by  slaves  on  "  a  festival  day,"  72-73. 

JElfric,  Archbishop,  law  of,  prohibits  "  servile  work  "  on  first  four 
days  of  Easter,  and  from  noon  Saturday  to  sunrise  Monday, 
74-75  ;  histitute  of :  prohibits  worldly  work,  except  necessity, 
after  hearing  mass  ;  gives  reason  why  ;  enjoins  church  attendance 
on  Saturday  evening,  75-76. 

America,  Sunday  legislation  in,  160-208. 

Atme,  Queen,  of  England,  law  of,  repeals  acts  of  Charles  II  con- 
cerning coaches,  etc.,  on  Sunday,  iii,  II2. 

A7'chery  practiced  on  Sunday,  144. 

Afizona  has  no  Sunday  law,  212. 

Arkansas,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  labor  by  self  or  representatives, 
opening  places  of  business  of  any  kind,  games  for  betting,  wager, 
or  amusement,  hunting,  shooting,  etc. — exceptions  :  necessity, 
charity,  vessels,  certain  manufacturing  establishments,  and  per- 
sons observing  the  seventh  day.     Penalty,  $i  to  $50,  211-212. 

^thelstane,  lazu  of,  forbade  marketing  on  Sunday,  73. 


258  General  Index. 

Auxerre,  Council  of,  forbade  yoking  oxen,  or  other  work,  except  for 
"  appointed  reasons,"  64. 

Bal-tietiy  ancient  sun-worship  festival,  157  ff. 

BinghaiHy  Joseph,  identifies  Constantine's  edict  with  pagan  laws ; 

uses  "  Lord's  day"  without  warrant,  ii. 
BiniuSy  history  of  councils,  quoted,  64,  66,  67,  6S. 
British  statutes  quoted,  97,  102,  iii,  112,  113. 

California  has  no  Sunday  law  since  1883,  212. 

Canute,  King  of  Denmark,  law  of,  orders  Sunday  to  be  observed  from 
Saturday  noon  to  sunrise  Monday,  forbids  Sunday  markets,  "  folk- 
motes,"  hunting,  worldly  work,  ordeals,  and  court  trials  on  festi- 
val days,  ember  days,  certain  days  of  Advent,  Easter,  St.  Ed- 
ward's day,  St.  Dunstan's  day,  etc.,  77,  78. 

Charles  I,  of  England,  law  of,  forbids  all  assemblies  outside  of  one's 
own  parish  for  any  "  sport "  whatever,  and  certain  sports  every- 
where, under  severe  fine,  and  '*  the  stocks  "  if  fine  be  defaulted  ; 
protected  those  enforcing  the  law,  and  left  offender  still  subject 
to  the  "Ecclesiastical  Court,"  100-102. 

Charles  IT,  of  England,  Sunday  law  of,  l^asis  of  American  !aws  ;  or- 
dered execution  of  existing  laws,  and  the  exercise  of ''duties  of 
piety  and  true  religion,"  publicly  and  privately  ;  forbade  all 
"ordinary  callings,"  necessity  and  charity  excepted,  by  any  per- 
son over  fourteen  years,  all  exposure  or  sale  of  goods,  all  travel- 
ing for  business,  by  land  or  water,  except  by  permission  of  a  com- 
petent officer,  loS-iii. 

Chatles  II,  of  Scotland,  law  of  1661,  approves  all  former  laws  ;  pro- 
hibits salmon-fishing,  running  salt-pans,  mills,  kilns,  shearing 
sheep,  markets,  and  merchandising,  and  "all  profanation  what- 
soever" on  Sunday;  penalty  ten  to  twenty  pounds.  Scot;  in 
default  of  fine,  bodily  punishment  ;  this  law  still  in  force,  148- 
149  ;  Law  of  i66j  prohibits  markets  on  Saturday  or  Monday, 
changes  legal  market-days  accordingly  ;  penalty,  one  hundred 
marks  ;  excepted  "  fleshers  in  royal  burghs,"  149,  150. 

Christianity,  a  universal  religion,  2  ;  seeks  only  protection  from  civil 
government,  2  ;  effect  of  paganism  upon,  3  ;  gave  strength  to  its 
adherents,  6  ;  recognized  in  Roman  Empire,  6  ;  attitude  of  Con- 


General  Index,  259 

stantine  toward,  8,  ff ;  not  favorable  to  Sunday  legislation,  i8  ; 
degenerate  state  of,  under  Constantine,  29  ff :  corrupted  by  pa- 
ganism, 48  ;  spiritual  state  of,  50  ff ;  character  of,  determined  by 
civil  law,  53  ;  political  favors  not  peculiar  to,  60  ;  straggled  with 
barbarism  in  middle  ages,  61. 

Codex,  Justin,  quoted,  19,  41,  42,  48. 

Codex  Theod.,  quoted,  20,  35,  36,  37,  38,  39,  40,  43,  44,  45,  46. 

Colorado,  Stmday  law  of,  prohibits  open  saloons  and  tippling-houses  ; 
penalty,  $100  or  imprisonment  six  months  or  less,  212. 

Connecticut,  Sunday  laxu  of,  forbids  secular  business,  open  shop, 
warehouse,  etc.,  exposing  property  for  sale,  sport,  or  recreation, 
concerts,  dancing,  games  of  chance,  sale  of  liquor,  traveling — ex- 
ception :  necessity,  mercy,  and  persons  keeping  Saturday  ;  pen- 
alty, $1  to  $40,  or  possible  imprisonment  for  thirty  days  ;  time, 
sunrise  to  sunset,  212,  214.  Amendmettts  of  1S87  prohibit  railroad 
trains  between  10.30  a.  m.,  and  3  p.  M.,  unloading  or  handling 
freight  between  sunrise  and  sunset,  transporting  passengers  for 
less  than  regular  fare  on  Sunday — exceptions :  necessity,  mercy, 
carrying  United  States  mail,  and  trains  authorized  by  railroad 
commissions  ;  penalty,  $50  to  $250,  214,  215. 

Connecticut  Colony,  law  of  16^0  punished  burglary  on  Sunday,  first 
offense,  by  loss  of  one  ear ;  second  offense,  of  both  ears  ;  third 
offense,  death,  187  ;  Lazu  of  i6^j  forbade  vessels  leaving  harbor 
on  Sunday  ;  punished  non-attendance  on  legal  worship  on  Sun- 
day, fast,  and  thanksgiving  days,  187-188  ;  Law  of  1668  forbids 
all  Sabbath  profanation,  and  compels  attendance  on  public  wor- 
ship, 188-189  5  ^^^  of  1676  forbade  all  work  and  diversion,  pub- 
lic drinking,  profane  desecration,  rade  or  irreverent  behavior  ; 
penalty  at  discretion  of  judges,  189-190  ;  Lazu  of  1684  enforced 
catechizing,  family  prayer,  and  general  observance  of  Sunday,  by 
selectmen,  constables,  and  grand-jury  men,  190  ;  Law  of  1721 
punished  non-attendance  on  lawful  worship,  "  going  forth  from 
one's  place  of  abode  except  for  worship  or  necessity,"  occupying 
meeting-house  without  consent,  disturbing  public  worship  on 
Sunday,  by  fine  or  imprisonment,  without  appeal,  191-192  ;  Law 
of  1726,  empowered  local  officers  to  punish  profanity,  drunken- 
ness, and  Sabbath-breaking,  without  trial,  193  ;  Law  of  1733  in- 
cludes  foi-mer  enactments,  prohibits    gathering   in   the  streets. 


26o  General  Index, 

"loitering  or  drinking,"  "posting  or  publishing  notices,"  ap- 
points two  tithing-men  for  each  parish,  and  adds  whipping  for 
non-payment  of  fine,  193-194  I  La-iv  of  1761  gives  additional 
power  to  arrest  travelers,  etc.,  195  ;  Law  of  lyyo  removes  penalty 
for  illegal  worship  from  "  sober  and  conscientious  dissenters,"  195. 

Constantine  the  Great',  attitude  toward  Christianity,  6;  adopted 
Christianity  as  a  superstition,  9  ;  always  Pontifcx  Maximus,  10  ; 
a  worshiper  of  Apollo  the  "  Unconquered  Sun,"  10  ;  first  Sun- 
day law  of,  pagan,  11  ff. ;  believed  the  sign  of  the  cross  magical, 
10  ;  law  concerning  aurispices,  19  ;  text  of  first  Sunday  law,  19; 
influence  of  sun-worship  on,  27  ;  criminality  of,  28  ;  sought  no 
advice  from  Christians  con-cerning  Sunday  law,  32  ;  modifies  first 
Sunday  law,  34. 

Cromwell,  Oliver,  first  Sunday  law  of,  forbids  all  selling  of  goods, 
all  traveling,  all  games,  116  ;  condemned  on  slight  proof,  117  ; 
punished  by  forfeiture,  fine,  and  corporally,  118  ;  suppressed 
"book  of  sports,"  118  ;  permitted  household  works  of  necessity, 
119;  compelled  attendance  at  church,  119;  Sunday  laws  to  be 
read  in  public,  119.  Second  Sunday  law  of  included  days  of 
humiliation,  thanksgiving,  etc.,  120  ;  civil  officers  ordered  to  en- 
force, I2D  ;  all  traveling  (by  land)  and  civil  service  forbidden, 
121  ;  traveling  and  business  by  water,  visiting  taverns,  tobacco- 
houses,  etc.,  forbidden,  122  ;  officers  empowered  to  search  for 
ofifenders,  fines  collected  by  distrains,  123  ;  ordered  setting  in 
stocks  or  cage  in  default  of  fine,  124  ;  officers  commanded  to  en- 
force law,  law  to  be  publicly  read,  125  ;  officers  protected  in  exe- 
cuting, 126.  Third  Sunday  law  of,  theological  basis  of,  127  ; 
provisions  repeated  against  traveling,  visiting  ale-houses,  tobacco 
and  victualing  houses,  singing,  playing  musical  instraments, 
etc.,  128 ;  all  mercantile  transactions,  and  specified  games  for- 
bidden, 129  ;  necessary  work  in  families  excepted,  130  ;  provisions 
against  business  by  water,  enlarged,  130-131 ;  assumption  of  civil 
office  forbidden,  131  ;  markets  and  fairs  forbidden,  132  :  fairs  and 
markets  on  Saturday  and  Monday  forbidden,  133  ;  officers  pun- 
ished for  non-enforcement,  134  ;  right  of  search  granted,  134, 
135  ;  offenses  of  minor  children  punished,  attendance  on  public 
worship  compelled,  disturbing  public  worship  forbidden,  136  ; 
publications   against   Sunday   observance   forbidden,    and   com- 


General  Index,  261 

moditlcs  offered  for  sale,  forfeited,  138;  "general  issue  plea" 
granted,  140. 
Cuthbeft,  canons  of,  orders  Sunday  to  be  wholly  given  to  divine  serv- 
ice, and  "  mass  "  in  all  churches  and  monasteries  ;  forbids  busi- 
ness, secular  meetings,  and  joumeyings,  except  for  ^r^a/ necessity  ; 
orders  religious  instruction  on  Sunday,  couples  Sunday  with  the 


Dakota,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  labor,  public  sports,  trades,  traffic, 
and  legal  processes — exceptions  :  necessity,  mercy,  milk,  meats, 
and  fish  before  9  A.  M.,  food  on  premises,  legal  process  in  breach 
of  peace  ;  justices  may  issue  process  on  complaint,  and  take  bail ; 
druggists,  and  persons  keeping  Saturday,  on  whom  civil  process 
may  not  be  served  on  that  day,  time  midnight  to  midnight,  pen- 
alty $1,  215-216. 

D' Alton,  on  early  religion  of  Ireland,  156. 

Delaware,  Sunday  laiu  of,  prohibits  all  v/orldly  labor,  all  business, 
all  traveling,  exposure  of  goods  for  sale,  fishing,  horse-racing, 
cock-fighting,  hunting,  gaming,  dancing,  or  liquor-selling  ;  per- 
mits works  of  necessity  and  mercy,  penalty  O4,  with  brief  impris- 
onment if  fine  be  defaulted,  216. 

Directory,  The,  for picblic  wo7-ship  jindsr  Cromwell,  forbids  all  world- 
ly business,  words,  and  thoughts,  on  Sunday  ;  orders  such  diet 
that  all  may  attend  church,  private  devotions,  presence  at  public 
worship  at  its  opening,  catechising,  singing  of  hymns,  holy  con- 
ference, and  works  of  mercy  between  services  ;  was  the  source 
of  customs  in  New  England,  140-142, 

Dyer,  Thos.,  says  early  Christianity  was  combined  "  pagan  idolatry 
and  Christian  truth  "  ;  that  Alexander  Severus  reckoned  Abra- 
ham, Orpheus,  Apollonius,  and  Christ  as  equals,  30. 

Edgar,  law  of,  orders  sacred  time  from  Saturday  noon  till  Monday 
sunrise  ;  all  "  mass  days,"  all  fasts,  and  every  Friday  "  to  be  kept 
with  every  earnestness,"  and  all  church  dues  to  be  paid,  74. 
Canon  of,  prohibits  "  devil's  games  and  heathen  songs  on  feast 
days,  trading  and  folk-motes  on  Sunday,  74. 

Ed^vard  the  Confessor,  law  of,  orders  large  number  of  saints'  days  to 
be  observed,  with  Sunday — sec  law,  79-80. 
1% 


262  General  Index. 

Edward  1,  of  England^  la:o  of,  forbade  markets  and  fairs  in  church- 
yards, 8g. 

Edward  III,  of  England,  law  of,  prohibits  showing  wool  on  "  Sun- 
day and  all  solemn  feasts  of  the  year,"  82. 

Edward  IV,  of  England,  law  of,  forbade  cobblers  and  cordwainers 
to  sell  or  fit  shoes,  etc,  to  customers  on  Sunday,  in  certain  parts 
of  London,  91-92. 

Edward  VI,  of  Englatid,  law  of,  contains  long  prelude,  places  ob- 
servance of  days  on  Church  authority,  couples  many  other  days 
with  Sunday,  empowers  ecclesiastical  officers  to  punish  offenders 
at  discretion,  protects  fast  days,  permits  labor  on  all  days  in  har- 
vests, or  at  any  time  under  necessity,  excepts  feasts  of  the  Knights 
of  the  Garter,  93-97. 

Edward  VI,  of  England,  Ltjiinctioji  of,  orders  all  subjects  to  "cele- 
brate and  keep  their  holy  day  "  in  hearing  and  reading  the  Bible^ 
private  and  public  prayers  and  confessions,  settling  quarrels, 
errands  of  mercy,  etc.  ;  pennits  labor  on  all  days  in  hai-vest,  and 
urges  thereto,  92-93. 

Eidelbald,  King  of  Mercians,  law  of,  (see  Cuthbert,  canons  of,  71-72). 

Elizabeth,  pursued  middle  course  in  Reformation,  placed  Sunday  on 
level  with  other  Church  days,  did  not  enforce  abstinence  from  labor 
on  Sunday,  permitted  Sunday  games,  etc.,  98.  Injunction  of,  en- 
joins subjects  to  "  celebrate  rnd  keep  their  holy  day"  in  hearing 
and  reading  the  Bible,  public  and  private  prayers  and  confessions, 
harmonizing  disputes,  and  receiving  the  communion  ;  orders  par- 
sons and  curates  to  teach  that  people  may  freely  work  in  harvest 
"  after  common  prayer,"  forbids  attending  church  outside  one's 
own  parish,  and  appoints  special  officers  to  compel  attendance^ 
99-100. 

Encyclopa:dia  Britannica  on  Heliogabalus,  shows  that  he  was  greatly 
devoted  to  the  Syrian  sun-god,  and  was  shamelessly  profligate,  22. 

English  Sunday  la'cos,  81-142. 

Erfurt,  Council  of,  increased  dies  non  by  more  than  fifty,  68. 

Ethelread  lata  of,  forbade  marketings  and  folk-motes  on  Sunday,  766. 

Fairbairn,  A.  M.,  on  Roman  Christianity,  Latin  mind  modeled 
Church  after  Roman  state,  gave  Pope  such  divine  honors  as  em- 
perors had  received,  16. 


General  Index,  263 

Florida,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  all  business,  trade,  labor  with  ani- 
mals or  mechanical  power,  all  disposing  of  goods  and  illegal  em- 
ployment of  apprentices  or  servants,  use  of  fire-arms  for  hunting 
or  target-shooting,  and  fishing  for  shad — exceptions :  necessity, 
mercy,  accidents,  emergencies,  ordinary  comforts  of  life  ;  penalty, 
$20  to  $50,  216-217. 

Gale,  Theophilus,  on  policy  of  Constantine ;  he  brought  men  into 
the  Church  by  compulsion  and  splendid  ceremonies  ;  Church- 
members  did  not  part  with  heathen  faith  and  rites  ;  this  depraved 
the  Church  and  admitted  anti-Christ.  i6,  17. 

Georgia,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  tippling-houses,  freight- 
trains,  all  business  and  labor,  and  bathing  in  sight  of  highway 
leading  to  house  of  worship — exceptions  :  necessity,  mercy,  trains 
cariying  live-stock  ;  penalty,  any  sum  under  $i,coo,  imprison- 
ment six  months  or  less,  hard  labor  in  chain-gang  twelve  months 
or  less,  217,  218. 

George  III,  England,  law  of,  forbids  baking  on  Sunday  in  London 
and  vicinity,  with  liberal  exceptions,  113. 

George  IV,  England,  repealed  law  of  George  III,  and  forbade  bak- 
ing in  Loudon  between  9  a.m.  and  i  P.  M.,  with  exceptions,  113. 

Gibbon,  Edward,  describes  sun-worship  tinder  Heliogabalus :  its 
grand  processions,  magnificent  temples,  costly  offerings,  lascivi- 
ous ceremonies,  and  marriage  of  sun-god  to  Astarte.  21,  22. 
Under  Aurelian  :  his  gorgeous  ''  triumph,"  ostentatious  piety, 
and  munificent  gifts  to  the  sun-god,  23,  24.  Under  Constan- 
tine :  he  persisted  in  pagan  practices  ;  was  governed  by  policy  ; 
his  coins  ornamented  with  figures  of  sun-god  ;  claimed  to  hold 
invisible  converse  with  him,  27.  On  nu7nber  of  Christians  under 
Constantine  the  Great :  no  positive  information  ;  at  most,  not 
more  than  one  twentieth  of  the  inhabitants,  31. 

Giesler,  /.  C.  L.,  says  the  Manichoeans  celebrated  Sunday  only  by 
fasting,  26. 

Henry  IV,  England,  law  of,  forbade  unlawful  games  on  Sunday  and 

other  festivals,  90. 
Henry  VI,  England,  law  of,  forbade  fairs  and  markets  on  Ascension 

Day,   Corpus  Christi,  Whitsunday,   Trinity  Sunday,  and  other 


264  General  Index, 

Sundays,  feast  of  the  Assumption,  All  Saints,  and  Good  Friday, 
under  penalty  of  confiscation  of  goods  ;  made  several  liberal  ex- 
ceptions, 90,  91. 

History  :  is  an  organic  development  from  original  germs,  i. 

Holland^  Sunday  law  of^  forbids  business  or  trade,  public  labor, 
exposure  for  sale  in  market  or  public  place  of  all  merchandise, 
"except  small  eating  wares";  prohibits  open  drinking-places 
and  public  games  during  hours  of  public  service,  theatres,  con- 
certs, and  the  like,  also  disturbing  noises  during  public  worship  ; 
law  applies  to  Sunday  and  "  other  religious  feast-days  generally 
celebrated  " — exceptions  :  necessity  and  special  provisions  made 
by  local  government  ;  penalty,  twenty-five  gilders  or  less — in 
default,  imprisonment  three  days  or  less  ;  second  offense,  penalty 
double  and  goods  exposed  confiscated,  inns  and  public  places 
closed  for  one  month  ;  laws  to  be  read  from  pulpit  and  publicly 
posted  ;  proper  authorities  ordered  to  "  maintain  the  strict  ob- 
servance, without  any  connivance  or  dissimulation,"  153-155. 

Idaho  Territory,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  opening  any  place  of 
business  between  10  A.  M.  and  3  p.  m.  ;  nearly  all  civil  processes 
permitted  in  emergency.  218. 

Illinois,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  tippling-houses,  disturbing 
peace  and  good  order  by  amusement  or  labor — exceptions :  neces- 
sity, charity,  railroads,  water-men,  ferry-men,  persons  moving, 
and  those  keeping  Saturday ;  contracts  on  Sunday  are  valid ; 
writs  and  injunctions  permitted  under  urgent  necessity  ;  time, 
midnight  to  midnight ;  penalty,  $200  or  less,  218,  219. 

Indiana,  Sunday  laiu  of  prohibits  persons  over  fourteen  years  of  age 
from  rioting,  hunting,  fishing,  quarreling,  or  common  labor — 
exceptions  :  charity,  necessity,  traveling,  families  emigrating, 
toll-taking,  and  ferry-men  ;  penalty,  $1  to  $10  ;  attachments  may 
be  served  if  debtor  is  absconding,  execution  when  loss  of  judg- 
ment is  feared,  any  civil  process  when  its  object  would  otherwise 
be  defeated  ;  acknowledgment  of  legal  papers  is  valid  ;  liquor- 
selling  forbidden ;  penalty,  $10  to  $50  and  imprisonment  ten  to 
sixty  days,  219  to  220. 

I7te,  King  of  Wessex,  law  of,  fined  owner  foi  working  slave  on  Sun- 
day ,  punished  slave  if  he  worked  without  order  of  master ;  a 


General  Index,  265 

freeman  forfeited  his  freedom  by  working  on  Sunday,  priests  suf- 
fered double  punishment,  71. 

Iowa,  Sunday  law  of,  forbids  rioting,  fighting,  hunting,  shooting, 
carrying  fire-arms,  fishing,  horse-racing,  dancing,  disturbing  pub- 
lic assemblies  or  private  families,  buying,  selling,  and  labor — 
exceptions :  necessity,  charity,  persons  obsemng  the  seventh  day, 
emigrants,  toll-takers,  and  ferry-men ;  penalty,  $1  to  $5  and 
costs,  with  imprisonment  till  paid,  220. 

Ireland,  pagan,  sun-worship  in,  155  ff . ;  Sunday  festival  in,  157. 

Irish  kings  distributed  ale  on  Sunday,  158. 

Islep,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Constitution  of,  opens  with  theo- 
logical argument,  bewails  profligacy  of  people  on  religious  festi- 
vals, forbids  **  such  works  as  are  profitable  to  the  commonwealth  " 
from  "  vespers  on  Saturday,"  also  on  a  host  of  saints'  days — see 
law ;  ordered  attendance  at  church  on  all  these  days  ;  laborers 
forbidden  to  rest  on  any  days  not  designated  by  law,  etc.,  85,  88. 

James  I,  England,  book  of  sports  of,  condemns  Papists  and  Puritans; 
claims  Sunday  as  belonging  to  common  people  for  amusement ; 
permits  all  "  recreations  "  which  do  not  injure  the  state  ;  orders 
Puritans  and  precisians  to  conform,  or  leave ;  enjoins  dancing, 
etc.,  after  morning  service  ;  prohibits  bear-baiting,  and  forbids 
recreations  to  those  who  will  not  first  attend  church  ;  orders  at- 
tendance within  one's  own  parish  ;  forbids  carrying  of  offensive 
weapons  at  games,  103-108. 

James  I,  Scotland,  law  of,  orders  training  in  archery  of  all  males 
over  twelve  years  of  age  on  holy  days  ;  penalty,  a  sheep,  144. 

Tames  III,  Scotland,  law  of,  orders  annual  changing  of  tenants,  etc., 
deferred  till  after  Whitsunday  and  Martinmas  ;  forbids  fairs  on 
holy  days,  144. 

James  IV,  Scotland,  law  of,  forbids  markets  and  fairs  on  holy  days, 
in  churches  or  church-yard  on  any  day  ;  penalty,  forfeiture  of 
goods,  144-145. 

James  VI,  Scotland,  lata  of  i^yg,  bewails  holding  of  fairs  and  mar- 
kets on  "  Sabbath-days,"  also  gaming,  frequenting  taverns,  and 
remaining  from  church  ;  forbids  markets  and  fairs  on  Sunday,  in 
churches  or  church-yards  on  all  days,  labor  on  Sunday,  frequent- 
ing ale-houses,  selling  of  meat  and  drink,   and  absence   from 


266  General  Index. 

church— penalty  for  labor,  ten  shillings  ;  for  gaming,  frequenting 
taverns,  selling  meat  and  drinks,  absence  from  church,  twenty 
shillings  :  in  default  of  fine,  "  the  stocks  or  other  engine  for  public 
punishment"  twenty-four  hours,  145-146.  Law  0/1^92  repeats 
prohibition  of  markets,  etc.,  and  establishes  other  market-days 
than  Sunday,  146-147.  Law  of  isgj  ratifies  former  laws,  empow- 
ers presbyteiy  to  nominate  officers  to  execute  laws,  punishes  neg- 
lect to  execute,  147.  Second  law  ofi^QJ  changes  market-day  from 
Sunday  to  Friday  in  the  Burgh  Forfare,  147-148.  Law  of  1^94 
repeats  former  laws,  forfeits  all  goods,  gear,  and  merchandise 
exposed  for  sale  on  Sunday  ;  punishes  offenders  "  at  the  will  of 
his  Majesty  with  advice  of  his  secret  counsel,"  148. 
Johnson,  John,  Saxon  laws  quoted  from,  72,  74. 

Kansas,  Sunday  lazu  of,  prohibits  all  labor  in  person  or  by  proxy, 
horse-racing,  gaming,  exposure  of  goods  or  liquors  for  sale,  hunt- 
ing and  shooting— exceptions :  necessity,  charity,  drugs,  medi- 
cines, provisions,  other  articles  for  immediate  use,  and  persons 
keeping  Saturday  who  are  free  from  civil  ser\^ice  on  that  day ; 
penalty,  $50  "^  less,  221. 

Kentucky,  Stinday  law  of,  forbids  business,  "ordinary"  labor  by 
self  or  others,  hunting,  and  all  gaming — exceptions:  necessity, 
charity,  household  duties,  and  persons  keeping  Saturday  ;  penal- 
ty, $1  to  $50,  and  forfeiture  of  license  by  keepers  of  billiard- 
tables  who  permit  gaming,  221-222. 

Labbc,  history  Church  councils,  quoted,  64,  66,  67,  68. 

lackey,  on  divinity  of  Roman  emperors  :  Caligula  claimed  his  divin- 
ity as  a  fact  ;  called  Jupiter  to  account  for  a  thunder-stomi,  etc. 
Heliogabalus  sought  to  unite  all  religions  in  worship  of  himself ; 
slaves  avoided  punishment  by  holding  images  of  the  emperor  ;  a 
capital  offense  to  commit  sacrilege  in  presence  of  emperor's 
statue,  7,  8. 

Lord's  day  appears  first  in  legislation  386  A.  D.,  36. 

Louisiana,  Sunday  law  of,  forbids  licensed  business  places  and 
plantation  stores  to  open  or  conduct  business  ;  time,  midnight  to 
midnight — exceptions :   nearly  everything  except  indiscriminate 


General  Index,  267 

sale  of  liquor ;  (see  text)  penalty,  $25  to  $250  or  imprisonment 
ten  to  thirty  days,  222-224. 

Macon,  Secojid  Council  of ,  forbids  litigation,  or  yoking  of  cattle  even 
under  necessity,  on  Sunday  ;  commands  to  be  occupied  in  praise, 
or  to  attend  church  for  prayers  and  repentance :  offenders  threat- 
ened with  wrath  of  God  and  anger  of  clergy,  an  advocate  loses 
his  cause,  a  countiyman  or  slave  incurs  whipping,  and  a  clerk 
or  monk  suspension  for  six  months,  as  penalty  of  disobedience, 
65-66. 

Maine,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  places  of  business,  travel, 
labor,  sporting,  gaming,  and  all  public  shows,  hunting  or  destroy- 
ing of  birds  or  other  game  ;  time,  midnight  to  midnight — excep- 
tions :  persons  observing  Saturday,  and  works  of  necessity  and 
charity  ;  penalty,  $10  or  less,  and  loss  of  license  by  inn-keepers  ; 
civil  process  illegal,  attempt  to  serve  punishable  ;  contracts  void, 
date  alone  not  sufficient  evidence  ;  contract  being  voided,  consid- 
eration must  be  restored  ;  tithing-men  or  others  may  prosecute 
within  six  months,  224-225. 

Ma}yland,  Sunday  Ixiu  of,  prohibits  all  labor,  fishing,  fowling,  hunt- 
ing, recreations,  "catching  oysters,"  open  barber-shops  and  all 
places  of  public  diversion — exceptions  :  necessity,  charity,  apothe- 
caries putting  up  bona-fde  prescriptions  ;  penalty,  $5  to  $500, 
with  double  penalty  for  repeated  offense,  also  loss  of  license  and 
imprisonment  ten  to  sixty  days,  225,  226. 

Massachusetts  Bay  Colony,  '■^Common  law  of  idsg,  forbade  labor 
after  three  o'clock  on  Saturday ;  ordered  catechising,  etc.,  167. 
Lazu  of  1664  recognized  death  penalty  for  "  striking  of  a  father" 
and  for  Sabbath-breaking,  16S.  Colonial  law  of  1646  compelled 
attendance  on  public  worship  on  Sunday  and  "thanksgiving" 
days,  i6g.  Law  of  i6^j  stringently  forbade  persons  above  seven 
years  of  age  from  walking  or  playing  in  the  streets  during  day- 
light on  Sunday  ;  penalty,  fine  and  whipping,  169,  170.  Law  of 
16^ J  ordered  posting  Sunday  law  on  meeting-house  door,  171. 
Lmw  of  i6_$4  empowered  the  officers  of  the  congregation  and  the 
selectmen  to  appoint  special  police  to  preserve  order  at  church, 
171.  Law  of  16^8  increased  restriction  against  walking,  etc., 
after  sunset  on  Saturday  night,  172,     Law  of  166 J  added  corpo- 


268  General  Index, 

ral  punishmenc  to  panalty,  173.  Lati)  of  1667  ordered  public 
reading  of  Sunday  law  twice  a  year ;  appointed  tithing-men  to 
apprehend  Sabbath-brcakei-s  ;  added  "caging"  to  penalty;  em- 
powered officers  to  "  make  diligent  search "  or  "  break  down 
doors"  to  arrest  Quakers  in  unlawful  meeting,  and  to  punish 
unnecessary  absence  from  legal  worship,  175-176.  Law  of  166S 
increased  penalty  for  Sabbath-breaking,  and  made  attendance  on 
unlawful  meetings  to  be  "  Sabbath-breaking,"  174.  Lazu of  idfj 
made  hotel-keepers  particeps  cri/ninis,  176.  Law  of  lOjy  made 
tithing-men  excise  officers,  with  enlarged  powers,  177.  Law  of 
idyg  (Boston  and  other  towns)  ordered  guard  at  sunset  Saturday 
night,  and  forbade  any  to  pass  out  of  town  without  permit ;  also 
reading  of  Sunday  law  by  town-clerk  instead  of  ministers,  177- 
178.  Colony  reorganized  i6gr,  178.  Laxsj  of  i6gj  embodied 
previous  laws,  prohibited  labor,  sporting,  traveling,  further  re- 
stricted "  public  houses,"  gave  large  power  to  local  magistrates, 
collected  fines  by  distraints  and  under  default,  set  in  stocks  or 
cage  for  three  hours  ;  operative  from  sunset  to  sunset ;  enjoined 
officers  to  enforce  the  law,  178-179.  Law  of  ly  16  increased  pen- 
alties for  v/orking,  playing,  and  traveling,  with  "double"  for 
second  offense,  and  *'  sureties  "  for  future  obedience  ;  with  special 
fine  for  absence  from  public  service  one  month,  179-180.  Lazu 
of  iy2j  increased  all  penalties,  and  added  imprisonment  in  coun- 
ty jail  five  days  or  less  ;  also  made  special  provisions  against  the 
**  great  profanation  "  of  Sunday  by  funerals,  and  granted  "  power 
of  search"  in  case  of  " drinking-places,"  180.  Law  of  1741  in- 
creased penalty  for  "  slothfuUy  loitering  in  streets  or  fields,"  but 
allowed  appeal,  180.  Law  of  ly 60  repealed  existing  laws  because 
they  were  not  executed,  gave  theological  reasons  in  preamble, 
and  prohibited  working,  playing,  traveling,  entertaining  any  but 
"travelers,  strangers,  and  lodgers"  in  public-houses,  loitering, 
walking,  or  gathering  in  companies  in  streets,  fields,  or  on  wharves, 
absence  from  public  service  for  one  month,  and  all  unlicensed 
funerals,  except  in  Boston,  after  sunset ;  time,  from  sunset  on 
Saturday  ;  twelve  wardens  with  excessive  powers  were  appointed 
in  each  town  to  execute  this  law ;  Sunday  patrol  established  in 
Boston  ;  penalty  :  fines,  loss  of  license  ;  surety  for  good  behavior, 
with  imprisonment  in  common  jail  five  to  ten  days  in  default  of 


Ge7ieral  Index,  269 

fine  ;  law  to  be  read  at  town  meeting  in  March  each  year,  i8o- 
182.  Law  of  jy 6 1  supplemented  that  of  1760  by  imposing  fine 
ci  five  pounds  for  giving  false  answers  or  refusing  to  aid  wardens, 
183. 

Massachusetts,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  travel,  labor,  business, 
opening  of  business  places,  sporting,  gaming,  use  of  fire-arms  for 
hunting  or  amusement,  fishing,  and  all  liquor-selling — exceptions : 
necessity,  charity  ;  prohibition  of  travel  no  defense  in  case  of 
"  tort  or  injury  "  ;  keepers  of  public-houses  liable  for  offenders  on 
their  premises  ;  civil  process  forbidden  ;  prisoners  may  be  bailed  ; 
railroad  commissioners  may  authorize  "  through  trains,"  if  deemed 

:  necessary ;  penalty,  $i  to  $100,  loss  of  license,  or  possible  im- 
prisonment under  six  months,  226-228.  Amendments  of  1SS7 
practically  annulled  the  foregoing  law  (see  text),  228,  229. 

Mayence,  Council  of,  forbade  servile  work,  and  judicial  trials  except 
for  capital  crimes,  on  Sunday,  66. 

Michigan,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  place  of  business,  attend- 
ance on  public  entertainments,  games,  etc.,  serving  of  civil 
process,  interrupting  religious  worship,  and  selling  liquor — ex- 
ceptions :  necessity,  charity,  mercy,  and  persons  observing  Satur- 
day :  penalty,  $10  or  less  ;  place  of  public  entertainment  liable 
for  those  entertained  ;  time,  midnight  to  midnight ;  courts  may 
open  to  discharge  a  jury,  receive  a  verdict,  or  attend  to  criminal 
cases  demanding  immediate  action  ;  game  and  fish  wardens  may 
make  arrests  on  Sunday,  229-230. 

Mihnan,  H.  II.,  says  laws  of  Constantine  were  ambiguous  ;  Sunday 
edict  made  no  reference  to  the  day  as  Christian  ;  sun-worshipers 
would  naturally  obey  the  law ;  no  direct  evidence  that  it  was 
anything  more  than  pagan,  12  f.  Diocletian  was  devotee  of  the 
sun-worship  ;  appealed  to  sun-god  for  exculpation  from  murder  ; 
consulted  Apollo  before  persecuting  Christians,  24.  On  Mani- 
chceans  :  their  worship  was  simple  ;  prayed  to  the  sun  ;  claimed 
that  Christ  dwelt  therein,  25.  Jtistinian  code  shows  the  Church 
under  control  of  the  emperors,  whose  laws  were  deemed  divine  ; 
they  ruled  monasteries  and  decided  ordination  of  bishops  ;  strove 
to  check  gross  immorality  in  the  clergy,  gaming,  drunkenness, 
and  the  like  in  vain  ;  bishops  were  imperial  officers  in  temporal 
affairs  ;  law  prescribed  the  number  of  clergy  in  each  church  ;  the 


270  General  Index. 

code  almost  exclusively  Roman  ;  Christianity  made  little  change 
in  it,  etc.,  56-59. 

Minnesota^  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  labor,  shooting,  hunting,  fish- 
ing, all  public  gaming,  shows,  and  disturbing  public  peace  ;  all 
business,  selling,  serving  of  legal  process — exceptions  :  necessity, 
charity,  articles  of  food  before  10  A.  M.,  meals  served  by  caterers, 
tobacco,  fruit,  confectionery,  medicine,  drugs,  etc.,  civil  process 
in  case  of  breach  of  peace,  and  when  specially  authorized  by 
statute  ;  penalty,  $10  or  less,  or  imprisonment  five  days  or  less, 
or  both,  230,  231. 

Mississippi,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  all  labor,  business  open  places 
of  business,  public  shows,  gam.ing,  hunting,  and  fishing — excep- 
tions :  necessity,  charity,  household  duties,  railroads,  steamboats, 
attachments,  injunctions,  and  all  "  remedial  processes,"  according 
to  judgment  of  judicial  officer ;  penalty,  $5  to  $20,  and  $50  to 
$100  for  selling  liquor,  231-232. 

Missouri,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  labor  by  self  or  another,  hunting, 
shooting,  horse-racing,  card-playing,  etc.,  exposure  of  goods  for 
sale,  or  selling  liquors — exceptions  :  necessity,  charity,  observers 
of  Saturday,  ferry-men,  and  "  sale  of  drugs,  medicines,  provisions, 
or  other  articles  of  immediate  necessity  " ;  penalty,  $50  or  less, 
232-233. 

Montana,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  theatres,  dance-houses, 
prize-rings,  racing,  and  "banking  games  of  cards"  ;  penalty,  %l 
to  $100  or  imprisonment  one  to  thirty  days,  or  both,  233. 

Neale,  Edzvard  V.,  says  judicial  and  non-judicial  days  not  the  prod- 
uct of  Christian  thought ;  they  were  common  before  Augustus  ; 
their  number  made  a  shield  for  criminals  ;  abstinence  from  labor 
on  days  devoted  to  religion  also  a  Roman  idea ;  shows  what  was 
permitted  and  prohibited,  13,  14.  On  Elizabeth's  policy,  it  was 
moderate  ;  Sundays  and  holidays  placed  by  her  on  same  ground, 
98. 

Neander  :  Manichceans  did  not  observe  Sunday  in  commemoration 
of  Christ,  they  fasted  on  that  day,  26. 

Nebraska,  Sunday  laiu  of,  prohibits  opening  of  civil  courts,  selling 
liquor,  sporting,  rioting,  quarreling,  hunting,  fishing,  shooting — 
exceptions  :  discharging  jury,  receiving  verdict,  duties  of  a  single 


General  Index.  271 

magistrate  in  civil  proceedings ;  persons  observing  Saturday, 
emigrants,  watermen,  toll-takers,  and  railways  ;  penalty,  $i  to 
$100,  234-235. 

Nevada,  Sunday  lazu  of,  prohibits  open  theatres,  race-courses,  games 
of  chance,  noisy  amusements,  and  judicial  business— exceptions  : 
jury  having  case  in  charge,  civil  service  demanding  immediate 
attention  ;  penalty,  $30  to  $200,  235. 

New  Ejigland,  colonial  government  of  a  theocracy,  160  ;  Sunday 
laws  enforced  in  :  John  Barnes,  punished  in  1636  ;  Stephen  Hop- 
kins in  1637  ;  Web  Adey  in  1639  ;  John  Shaw  and  Stephen  Bry- 
ant in  1649;  Edward  Hunt  in  1650;  Elizabeth  Eddy,  Arthur 
Howland,  Nathanial  Bassett,  Joseph  Prj'or,  Abraham  Pierce, 
Henry  Clark,  and  Thurston  Clark  in  i65i-'52  ;  Peter  Gaunt, 
Ralph  Allen,  Sr.,  George  Allen,  and  William  Chase  in  1655 
{circa) ;  Lieutenant  Wyatt  in  1658  ;  Sarah  Kirby  (publicly 
v/hipped)  and  Ralph  Jones  in  1658,  206-208. 

New  Ha77ipshirc,  Simday  lazu  of  prohibits  work,  secular  business, 
and  labor  "to  the  disturbance  of  others";  playing,  gaming? 
keeping  open  place  of  business,  or  exposing  merchandise  for  sale 
— exceptions :  necessity,  charity,  bakers,  druggists,  milk,  and 
other  necessaries  of  life  ;  penally,  $10  or  thirty  days'  imprison- 
ment ;  time,  midnight  to  midnight,  235,  236. 

New  Haven  Colony,  "  common  law  "  of,  Jewish,  184  ;  Law  of  1647 
forbade  all  Sabbath-breaking  from  sunset  to  sunset ;  punishment 
at  judgment  of  court,  1S5  ;  Law  of  16^6  required  attendance  on 
legal  worship  on  Sunday,  "fast,"  and  "  thankgiving "  days,  185  ; 
''presumptive"  Sabbath-breaking  punishable  with  death,  186, 

New  Jersey,  Sunday  law  of  prohibits  all  travel,  M'orldly  business, 
shooting,  hunting,  fishing,  and  public  diversions  ;  travelers  may 
be  stopped  by  any  citizen  and  detained  until  Monday ;  all  public 
or  private  transportation  by  vehicles  liquor-selling,  gambling, 
and  other  common  nuisances,  hunting  v/ith  any  weapons,  with  or 
without  dogs,  trapping  or  snaring  game — exceptions :  charity, 
one  passenger  train  each  way  on  railroads,  freighting  of  milk, 
running  of  ferry-boats,  civil  service  in  breach  of  peace,  disorderly 
persons  and  cases  of  bastardy,  persons  observing  Saturday  may 
labor  upon  their  own  premises,  are  free  from  labor  on  highways, 
and  military  duties  ;  penalty,  in  general,  $10  ;  in  default  of  fine. 


272  General  Index, 

imprisonment  under  ten  days,  with  extra  penalties  for  selling 
liquor,  keeping  "  disorderly  house,"  etc.  (see  "  Statutes,"  which  are 
veiy  elaborate),  236,  238. 

New  Mexico^  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  public  gaming,  racing,  danc- 
ing, disturbing  assemblies,  buying  or  selling,  public  meetings, 
except  religious,  open  places  of  business,  displaying  merchandise, 
sale  of  liquors,  etc. — exceptions  :  necessity,  mercy,  traveleis, 
ferry-boats,  livery-stables,  hoteb,  restaurants,  barbers,  butchers, 
bakers,  apothecaries,  irrigating  of  fields,  persons  removing,  serv- 
ing civil  process  under  liability  of  loss  or  inconvenience  ;  time, 
sunrise  to  midnight ;  penalty,  $10  to  $50  first  offense  ;  $25  to 
$100  subsequent  offense,  or  imprisonment  f^'e  to  twenty  days, 
23S,  239. 

A^e7V  York,  colony  of,  law  of  1647,  forbade  Sabbath -breaking,  brawl- 
ing, drunkenness,  liquor-selling,  except  to  travelers,  "  before  two 
o'clock  on  Sunday  when  there  is  no  preaching,  and  after  9  P.  M.,', 
200;  Law  of  i6gs  forbade  travel,  labor,  shooting,  fishing,  sport- 
ing, playing,  horse-racing,  frequenting  of  tippling-houses,  etc. ; 
general  fine,  six  shillings,  punishment  **  on  sight "  by  justice  of 
the  peace  ;  three  hours  in  "  the  stocks  "  in  default  of  fine  ;  travel 
under  twenty  miles  permitted  if  in  attending  public  worship  or 
going  for  physician  or  nurse,  199-201. 

New  York  State,  Sunday  liw  of,  prohibits  serving  of  civil  process, 
sporting,  hunting,  fishing,  horse-racing,  tippling-houses,  travel, 
servile  labor,  sale  of  goods,  fruit,  herbs,  etc.,  and  liquors — excep- 
tions: necessity,  charity,  traveling  for  public  worship,  visiting 
the  sick,  carrying  United  States  mails,  executing  orders  of  public 
officers,  removing  of  family,  persons  keeping  Saturday— who  are 
also  free  from  jury  duly,  ordinary  military  sei-vice,  and  submitting 
to  service  of  civil  process  on  that  day— sale  of  meats,  milk,  or  fish 
before  9  A.  m.,  the  sale  of  liquors  to  lodgers,  and  persons  "  legally 
traveling  "  ;  general  penalty,  $1  ;  for  liquor-selling,  $2.50,  prose- 
cutions to  be  made  within  twenty  days,  239,  240 ;  general  law 
much  weakened  by  amendments  to  penal  code  in  1883,  242  (see 
statute) ;  special  defense  for  those  who  observe  Saturday  enacted 
in  1885,  242. 

New  York  city,  special  p7'ovisions  for  :  Law  of  1S60  prohibits  speci- 
fied public  exhibitions;  Lmiv  of  1S72  forbids  "  processions  "  on 


General  Index,  273 

Sunday,  except  funeral  and  those  from  churches  and  religious 
services  ;  Law  of  1882  forbids  theatrical  and  operatic  shows  on 
Sunday,  makes  property-holders  liable,  and  forbids  noisy  parades 
and  processions,  240-242.     (Consult  "  Statutes.") 

NicJwlas  I,  instriictions  to  Bu7'gundians  taught  that  journeying,  fight- 
ing, etc..  were  lawful  on  all  days;  "Our  hopes  do  not  rest  on 
days  ;  "  classes  Sunday,  saints'  days,  etc.,  together,  67. 

A^orthumbrian  priests,  law  of,  forbade  traffic,  folk-motes,  and  all 
forms  of  traveling  on  Sunday,  77. 

North  Carolina,  Sunday  law  of,  forbids  ordinary  work,  business, 
hunting,  fishing,  fowling,  and  public  sports  by  persons  over  four- 
teen years  of  age,  running  railroad  trains,  handling  freight,  and 
fishing  with  nets,  and  all  sale  of  intoxicating  liquors — exceptions  : 
necessity,  charity,  medical  prescriptions,  trains  in  transitu  up  to 
9  A.  M.,  and  trains  carrying  perishable  freight,  also  "  established 
seines  "  in  Carteret  and  Onslow  Counties,  242-243. 

Cdo,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Canon  of,  declares  fasting  and  alms 
to  be  a  means  of  salvation  ;  ordered  Wednesday,  Friday,  all 
days  of  Lent,  Sunday,  and  saints'  days  to  be  carefully  ob- 
served, 73. 

Ohio,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  sporting,  rioting,  quarreling,  hunting, 
fishing,  shooting,  common  labor,  and  sale  of  liquors — exceptions  : 
persons  obscr/ing  Saturday,  emigrants,  v/atermen,  toll-takers  and 
ordinary  arrests  ;  penalty  $20  or  less,  or  imprisonment  twenty 
days  or  less,  244. 

Oregon,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  open  places  for  business  or  amuse- 
ment, tippling-houses,  saloons,  and  ordinary  service  of  civil 
process — exceptions  :  druggists,  physicians,  undertakers,  livery- 
men, butchers,  bakers  ("  necessity  and  m.ercy  may  be  offered  in 
defense  "),  and  jury  having  case  in  charge  ;  penalty  $5  to  $50, 
244,  245. 

Orleans,  Third  Council  of,  condemned  overstrict  observance  of  Sun- 
day as  Jewish  ;  better  to  abstain  from  rural  work  ;  off"enders  pun- 
ished by  ecclesiastical  authority,  64. 

Patrick,  St.,  condemns  sun-worship,  156. 

Peckham,  John,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  taught  that  the  Sabbath 
Church  has  full  power  to  determine  what  days 


2  74  General  Index, 

should  be  observed  ;  observance  to  be  according  to  "  canonical 
law,"  and  not  "Jewish,"  8i,  82. 

Pennsylvania,  Colony  of,  law  of  lyoo-oi,  under  Evans  and  Penn, 
prohibited  servile  work  and  tippling  in  drinking-houses — ex- 
cepted :  preparing  food  in  public  houses,  selling  by  butchers  and 
fishermen  during  June,  July,  and  August,  milk  before  9  A.  M., 
and  landing  passengers  by  watermen  all  day  ;  taverns  allowed  to 
sell  liquors  in  moderation  to  regular  inmates  and  travelers  ;  serv- 
ice of  civil  process  forbidden.  Law  of  JjSd,  prohibited  working 
and  sporting  under  penalty  of  thirty  shillings :  it  excepted 
boatmen,  watermen,  stage-coaches — when  permitted  by  civil 
officers  on  extraordinary  occasions — preparing  food,  delivering 
milk  and  other  necessaries  of  life  before  9  A.  M.  and  after  5  p.  M. 
Law  of  jygjf.  fessentially  like  the  above,  202,  203. 

Feitnsylvania,  Sunday  law  of  prohibits  civil  process,  all  worldly 
labor  and  business,  gaming,  shooting,  hunting  or  diversion, 
drinking  in  tippling-houses,  all  sale  of  liquors,  fishing  and  trap- 
ping, canals  and  railroads  not  compelled  to  attend  their 
works  to  expedite  travel — -exceptions  :  necessity,  charity,  pre- 
paring food,  emigrants  in  transitu,  delivering  milk  and  other 
necessaries  of  life  before  9  A.  m.  and  after  5  P.  M.  ;  keepers  of 
public  houses  liable  for  offenders  on  their  premises  ;  penalty  $4 
to  $50,  placing  in  stocks,  or  binding  to  good  behavior  ;  "  forcible 
entry  for  a  better  view  of  offenders  permitted,"  £45,  246. 

Plymouth  Colony,  law  of  idjo  prohibited  servile  work  and  'such 
like  abuse"  on  Sunday  ;  penalty,  ten  shillings  or  whipping,  161  ; 
Law  of  16^1  commanded  attendance  on  lawful  worship  ;  penalty, 
ten  shillings,  profaning  Sunday  by  sloth  or  laziness  ;  penalty,  ten 
shillings  or  whipping,  161,  162.  Law  of  idjS  prohibited  trav- 
eling, bearing  burdens,  etc.  ;  penalty,  immediate  arrest,  twenty 
shillings,  or  four  hours  in  "the  stocks,"  162.  Laiu  of  1661  pro- 
hibited "  frequent "  absence  from  lawful  public  worship  ;  penalty, 
ten  shillings  each  offense,  163.  Law  <7/"/66^  prohibited  "ordi- 
nary keepers"  from  sei-ving  wine  or  liquor  on  Sunday,  except 
"  for  the  relief  of  those  that  are  sick  or  faint "  ;  penalty,  ten  shil- 
lings, 163  ;  also  forbade  hunting  or  work  by  Indians.  This  was 
repeated  in  1666,  167.  I^aw  of  166^  prohibited  sleeping,  jesting, 
etc.,  "  without  doors  at  the  mccting-house  "  on  Sunday  ;  penalty, 


General  Index,  275 

being  admonished,  or  set  in  "  the  stocks  "  by  constable.  In  i66g, 
constables  and  their  deputies  were  further  instructed  to  warn 
"  such  as  sleep  or  play  about  the  meeting-house,"  and  report 
them  to  the  court  if  they  do  not  reform  ;  the  same  provision  was 
to  be  executed  against  "  unnecessaiy  violent  riding  "  on  Sunday  ; 
the  same  law  forbade  "  smoking  of  tobacco  within  two  miles  of 
the  meeting-house  "  on  Sunday,  under  penalty  of  twelve  pence, 
165-166.  Law  of  166S  ordered  the  selectmen  to  note  profane 
and  slothful  neglect  of  public  worship,  and  report  offenders  to  the 
court,  166.  Law  of  1670  empowered  officers  to  search  for  those 
absent  from  church,  and  return  their  names  to  the  court,  166, 167. 
Law  of  16S2,  prohibited  traveling,  except  under  permission  from 
proper  officers,  granted  only  on  great  necessity,  transgressors  to 
be  apprehended  by  any  person  ;  also  prohibited  servile  work, 
labors  or  sports  on  legal  fasts  and  days  of  thanksgiving,  163, 
164.  Plymouth  colony  united  with  Massachusetts  in  1691, 
167. 

I'opery  established  in  Scotland,  1560,  143. 

Presbytciianism  established  in  Scotland,  i6go,  143. 

Fnsonen  to  be  humanely  treated,  and  conducted  to  bath  under 
guard  on  Sundays,  bishops  to  superintend  this,  43. 

Puritans^  Sunday  laws  of,  in  England,  1 15-142. 

Renait,  Ernest,  on  religion  of  Romans,  it  was  purely  civil,  the  state 
was  the  Romans'  god  ;  v/as  aristocratic  ;  priesthood  not  based  on 
rehgious  considerations  ;  dealt  with  actions,  not  motives  ;  wor- 
shiper must  do  no  more  for  the  gods  than  law  required  ;  Chris- 
tianity, at  first,  was  modified  Judaism,  3-5. 

Rheuns,  Council  of,  forbade  servile  work,  law  courts,  and  mercantile 
transactions  on  Sunday,  66,  67. 

Rhode  Island  Colony,  laio  of  i6yj  announced  religious  liberty,  for- 
bade general  labor,  or  evil-doing,  drinking,  gaming,  etc.,  on  Sun- 
day, appointed  special  Sunday  police,  195-197.  La~o  of  ibyg, 
forbade  using  servants,  sporting,  gaming,  and  drinking  under 
penalty  of  fine  or  stocks,  197,  ig8. 

Rhode  Island,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  ordinary  labor  and  business, 
all  games,  sports,  and  recreations,  employment  of  other  persons, 
etc. — exceptions  :  necessity,  charity,  Jev/s,  and  Seventh-day  Bap- 


276  General  Index. 

tists — with  certain  restrictions  concerning  noisy  work — except  in 
Hopkinton  and  Westerly  ;  penalty,  five  dollars,  246-247. 
Rome,  regarded  religion  as  a  department  of  the  state,  3  ;  religion  of, 
aristocratic,  regulated  by  civil  law,  4  ;  favored  religious  syn- 
cretism, provided  for  all  religions,  5  f. ;  regulated  Christianity  by 
law,  6  ;  emperors  of,  deified,  7  f. ;  forbade  work  on  pagan  festi- 
vals, II,  14;  forbade  civil  transactions  on  pagan  festivals,  14,  15. 

Saints'  days,  associated  with  Sunday  in  England,  95. 

Saturday,  Jews  not  to  be  molested  on,  nor  to  molest  Christians  on  ; 
observed  as  late  as  409,  a.  d.,  41,  42. 

Saxon  Sunday  Laws,  70-80. 

Schaff,  Philip,  shows  Constantine  as  first  representative  of  a  "  Chris- 
tian theocracy "  ;  of  a  hurtful  union  between  Christianity  and 
politics  ;  his  religious  views  neither  deep  nor  broad  ;  he  adopted 
Christianity  as  a  superstitution  ;  enjoined  soothsaying  in  same 
year  he  issued  Sunday  edict;  always  Pontifex  Maximus ;  re- 
nounced heathenism  on  his  death-bed,  8.  Heliogabalus,  a  de- 
praved  priest  of  the  sun-god,  for  whom  he  was  named,  20.  Con- 
stantine falsely  described  by  Eusebius  ;  vices  increased  with  his 
power  ;  guilty  of  gross  and  inexcusable  crimes,  treachery,  murder, 
etc. ;  not  morally  transformed  by  Christianity  ;  guilty  of  duplicity 
up  to  the  last,  28  ;  shows  worship  of  saints  to  be  the  product  of 
paganism ;  that  Christians  worshipped  the  sun-god  before  en- 
tering St.  Peter's  church  ;  that  martyr-worship,  many  fonns  of 
observing  Christmas,  and  the  Continental  Sunday,  are  the  product 
of  heathenism,  29,  30.  Constantine  s  Sunday  laiu,  a  pagan  docu- 
ment, 32.  Ckristiajtity  muck  corrupted,  when  Roman  Empire  fell ; 
Church  filled  v/ith  pagans,  and  secularized  by  union  with  the 
state,  51-53.  Middle  age,  one  of  darkness  and  blind  faith  ; 
Church  controlled  all  life  ;  Church  hierarchy  supreme,  61-63. 

Scobell,  acts  of  Cromwell,  quoted  120,  126,  140,  142. 

Scotland,  Kirk  of,  150  ff. 

Scotland,  Sunday  Laws  of,  143-153. 

Scissons,  Second  Council  of,  instituted  many  non-judicial  days,  67. 

South  Carolina,  Sunday  latv  of,  prohibits  worldly  business,  labor, 
offering  anything  for  sale,  public  sports  and  pastimes,  use  of 
gaming-tables,  running,  loading,  or  unloading  railroad  trains — ex- 


General  Index,  277 

ceptions :  necessity,  charity,  persons  under  fifteen  years,  nxiil 
and  construction  trains,  other  trains  under  extraordinary  emer- 
gencies, civil  process  for  felony,  treason,  or  breach  of  peace  ; 
penalty,  $i  to  $500,  owners  of  gaming-tables  liable  for  offenders 
on  premises,  247-248. 

Stephens^  John  Archibald,  quoted  on  English  Laws,  82. 

Stille,  C.J.,  shows  Constantine  as  a  leader  at  Council  of  Nice,  as  the 
author  of  state-church  idea,  first  to  punish  heretics  by  civil  law  ; 
Christian  hierarchy  developed  in  fourth  century  ;  gained  immense 
power  under  Ambrose,  54-56. 

Tarragon,  Council  of,  forbade  clergy  to  tr}'  civil  cases  on  Sunday,  and 
ordered  them  to  attend  to  religious  services,  64. 

Tennessee,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  common  avocations,  hunting, 
fishing,  gaming,  and  being  drunk — exceptions  :  necessity,  charity, 
and  "  public  service  "  in  time  of  peace  ;  private  contracts  are 
valid  outside  of  one's  regular  business  ;  general  penalty,  $3,  248. 

Texas,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  labor  by  self  or  representative, 
horse-racing,  match-shooting,  all  gaming  for  money,  all  selling  of 
goods  and  wares — exceptions  :  nearly  everything  in  the  line  of 
labor,  persons  keeping  Saturday,  provisions  before  9  A.  M,,  and 
drugs  and  medicines  throughout  the  day  ;  general  penalty,  $10  to 
$50,  249. 

Thorpe,  Benjamin,  Saxon  laws  quoted,  71,  72,  73,  74,  75,  76,  77,  78, 

79- 

Thorsby,  John,  Archbishop  of  York,  forbade  markets  in  churches, 
church  porches,  cemeteries,  and  other  "holy  places,"  on  Sundays 
and  festivals,  also  rude  games  at  such  times  and  places,  89. 

Triburary,  Council  of,  forbade  holding  of  courts  on  Sunday,  saints' 
days.  Lent,  and  other  festivals,  68. 

Uhlhorn,  Gerhard,  says  Constantine  was  little  favorable  to  Christian- 
ity in  312  A.  D. ;  as  a  monotheist  he  worshipped  the  sun-god,  ii. 

United  States,  Sunday  laws  in,  not  generally  observed,  disregard  of, 
weakens  obligation,  209. 

Utah  Territory,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  bull,  bear,  cock,  and  prize 
fighting,  horse-racing,  circus  shows,  open  gambling-houses,  sa- 
loons, theatres,  and  public  spectacles  where  intoxicating  drinks 
are  sold  or  given  away,  all  shows  for  which  fee  is  charged,  and 
opening  of  business  houses — exceptions  :  hotels,  boarding-houses, 
19 


278  General  Index, 

baths,  restaurants,  livery-stables,  dnig-stores,  manufacturing  es- 
tablishments in  continual  operation  ;  penalty,  $5  to  $100 ;  time, 
midnight  to  midnight,  250. 

Vermont,  Sunday  law  of,  forbids  all  business  or  employment,  pres- 
ence at  public  assemblies  not  religious,  traveling,  visiting,  public 
dancing,  gaming-houses,  etc.,  also  hunting  or  discharging  fire- 
arms— exceptions  :  necessity,  charity,  humane  works,  military  and 
police  duty;  penalty,  $2  to  $10;  civil  process  void,  except  in 
emergency,  251. 

Virginia,  colony,  laws  0/  j6iy-i63j,  ordered  attendance  on  church  ; 
penalty,  two  pounds  of  tobacco  ;  absence  for  a  month,  fifty  pounds 
of  tobacco,  203-204.  ///  i62g  and  1642  ordinary  employment, 
traveling,  loading  of  boats,  shooting  of  game,  etc.,  forbidden  ; 
penalty,  twenty  to  one  hundred  pounds  of  tobacco,  204-205.  By 
law  of  1786  ministers  are  exempted  from  arrest  while  performing 
public  duties  ;  disturbing  public  meetings  punished  by  fine  ;  all 
labor  forbidden,  205.  Law  of  1801  forbade  trading  with  slaves, 
and  of  i8ig  excessive  drinking,  205-206. 

Virginia,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  all  labor  and  business,  opening 
places  where  liquor  is  sold,  running,  loading,  or  unloading  rail- 
road trains — exceptions  :  charity,  necessity,  mail  trains,  live- 
stock, and  perishable-fruit  trains,  and  persons  keeping  Saturday. 
Liquor  law  not  applicable  to  cities  of  10,000  inhabitants  ;  penal- 
ty, $2  to  $100,  251-252 

Wales,  ancient,  Sunday  in,  159.     Monday,  dies  non,  159. 

Washington  Territory,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  theatres,  race- 
courses, cock-pits,  games  of  chance,  noisy  amusements,  liquor- 
shops,  judicial  and  general  business — exceptions  :  civil  service  in 
criminal  cases,  attachments  and  injunctions  under  civil  code,  jus- 
tice-practice and  probate-practice  acts,  hotels,  drug-stores,  livery- 
stables,  undertakers  ;  penalty,  $25  to  $100,  253. 

West  Virginia,  Sunday  law  of,  prohibits  all  labor,  business,  hunting, 
shooting,  gaming,  etc. — exceptions  :  household  works,  necessity, 
charity,  official  carrying  of  arms,  mail  and  passenger  trains,  per- 
sons observing  Saturday,  civil  contracts,  service  of  civil  process 
in  emergency,  inquests,  etc. ;  giving  away  liquors  on  Sunday  con- 
stitutes a  special  misdemeanor  ;  penalty,  $5  to  $100,  253-254. 

Wilkins's  ''Concilia;'  etc.,  quoted,  89,  93,  99,  100,  108, 


General  Index,  279 

William  III,  Sunday  law  for  Ireland,  forbade  general  work,  boister- 
ous games  and  traveling  ;  restricted  sale  of  liquor,  and  enlarged 
the  power  of  officers  to  execute  ;  v.as  a  puritanic  law,  with  many 
"  exceptions,"  iii. 

Wisconsin^  Stuiday  laiu  of,  prohibits  all  labor  and  business,  dancing, 
diversion,  shows,  or  entertainments  ;  giving  or  selling  liquor,  value 
of  liquor  sold  on  Sunday  not  recoverable — exceptions  :  necessity, 
charity,  persons  observing  Saturday  ;  legalizes  notices  published 
in  Sunday  papers  ;  grants  the  use  of  highways  to  the  public  ;  vio- 
lation of  Sunday  law  no  defense  in  case  of  injury  ;  penalty,  $io, 
or  less,  to  $20,  or  imprioomnent  for  thirty  days  or  less,  or  both. 

254-255. 
JVyoming-  Territory,  Suiday  law  of^  prohibits  notorious  public  in- 
decency and  public  gaming ;  penalty,  $100  or  less  or  imprison- 
ment, six  months  or  less,  255-256. 


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